WORK AND PENSIONS

Cabinet Office Guidance

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, 
	(1)  pursuant to his answer of 24 July 2002, Official Report, in what circumstances it is not appropriate to follow Cabinet Office guidance; and whether there have been written consultations carried out by his Department when it has not been appropriate to do so;
	(2)  pursuant to his answer of 24 July 2002, Official Report, what assessment he made of whether it was appropriate to follow the guidance in relation to the consultation in the pensions statement; and if he will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 15 October 2002
	As a general rule, the requirements of the Code of Practice on Written Consultation apply to all national consultations carried out by the Department for Work and Pensions.
	It should, however, be noted that the Code of Practice applies to those consultations that cover
	''the whole area of a Department's responsibility . . .'' where views are sought from the public. The code makes clear that parts, but not necessarily all of the guidance it contains may be relevant to more limited consultation exercises, such as those seeking views from professional bodies or departmental trade unions, or consultation with local government. There may be occasions, for example on practical aspects of implementing technical legislation, where consultation is limited to those directly affected.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to extend joint claims for jobseeker's allowance to childless partners of unemployed people who are aged 45 or under.

Malcolm Wicks: From 28 October 2002 we shall extend the provision for Joint Claims for Jobseeker's Allowance (Income Based) to include couples without dependent children where at least one partner was born after 28 October 1957 and is also aged 18 or over. Couples meeting the new joint claims criteria will be required to make a joint claim and meet the JSA conditions for benefit entitlement, in the same way as current joint claimants.

Benefit Fraud

Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement about the inspection report of the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate in respect of Cherwell District Council.

Malcolm Wicks: The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) inspection report on Cherwell District Council was published on 19 September 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The BFI finds that the council had implemented improvements since its Best Value Review and the BFI Best Value inspection in October 2001. The introduction of a customer service team has had a positive impact on claims processing speed as this team deals with all telephone enquiries from claimants, which allows processing of claims without interruption. The council had set challenging targets to answering telephone calls quickly and BFI found the service to be efficient.
	The report identifies a number of strengths and good practices. The council is commended for the high standard of verifying claims for benefit, recording the required evidence to support the claim and using efficient procedures to control and monitor claims.
	The council has effective mechanisms for the identification, classification and recovery of overpayments and is commended for its use of management information for monitoring performance. However, the report notes that a number of cases sampled had been incorrectly classified. The council is recommended to use its powers to recover debt in all appropriate cases to improve the rate of recovery.
	The council is also commended for its partnership approach to long-term strategies. The Community Plan has been produced with 15 public, private and voluntary sector organisations after extensive consultation with local people.
	The report recognises the council's commitment to fraud prevention, deterrence and detection. Fraud awareness among benefit staff is high and this is reflected in the number of high quality fraud referrals that benefit staff make to the council's fraud investigators.
	BFI expresses concern with the lack of management checks on IT security. The council has responded positively to this and has taken immediate steps to rectify the situation.

Benefit Fraud

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement about the inspection report of the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate in respect of (a) North Ayrshire Council, (b) Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council and (c) the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames.

Malcolm Wicks: The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) inspection report on North Ayrshire Council was published on 18 September 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The report finds that in the first instance, the council had been delivering an inadequate benefits service. The council needs to take some basic decisions on its operational strategy for delivering benefits, such as the structure, location and management arrangements for benefits administration and counter fraud.
	In terms of delivering the service, the report notes that the standards expected for verifying claims to benefit were not being met. Contributory factors included a poorly designed claim form that failed to guide the claimant to complete it accurately, the absence of quality checks to identify weaknesses, insufficient staff training, the lack of a visiting team to undertake targeted checks and a constant backlog of cases. A high percentage of private sector claims were not being referred to the Rent Officer and were thus avoiding the required controls on rent and benefit levels.
	The council operates decentralised benefit processing within its housing offices. At the time of the inspection, there were longstanding backlogs of work. The speed of processing was poor but varied across area and benefit type. Claimants were not receiving the same standard of service across the council's area.
	The BFI expresses major concerns over the safety and security of the council's IT systems to support the benefits service.
	Overpayments have been found to be a particularly weak area of the council's performance. The BFI considers that improvement is needed across all areas, including accuracy, identifying, recording and recovering overpayments. Improvements are also needed on the audit trail for decision making and management information.
	The council was not generating the management information needed to manage benefits effectively. For example, in the areas of workflow and capacity, appeals and overpayments.
	BFI commends the council for funding Professionalism in Security (PINS) training for its counter fraud staff. At the time of the inspection, fraud investigation was found to be inadequate but the signs were that this would improve. The council needs to develop its Prevention and Detection of Fraud and Corruption policy to include objectives, reporting arrangements, sanctions, review arrangements and how it will evaluate its effectiveness.
	The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) follow up inspection report on Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council was published on 19 September 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The BFI first inspected and published a report on Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council in October 1999. The report made eight major recommendations to improve performance.
	This follow up report finds that while progress had been made in implementing these recommendations it had been too little and too slow.
	The first inspection made a number of recommendations to improve the council's internal security. Some of these have been implemented but IT access controls remains weak, division of duties is not always appropriate, there is inadequate management checking and insufficient internal audit coverage.
	The correct verification of claims was highlighted as an issue at the first inspection and remained inconsistent at the time of the follow up inspection.
	Significant improvements were needed to the council's procedures for backdating claims. While some of these had been implemented, the follow up inspection showed there was still a need for improvement, in particular record keeping of applications for backdating. Further improvements were also needed to the council's claim form to ensure that claimants provide sufficient information to allow assessment of the claim.
	There had been a noticeable improvement, including the appointment of a new fraud manager, in the council's counter fraud work although much of this improvement took place in the months leading up to the on-site phase of the follow up inspection.
	The council dealt speedily with the processing of new and renewal claims, unfortunately, the BFI found that the number of errors entering the system at the time of inputting the information was increasing, with 11 mistakes found in a sample of 40 claims. The problem of a considerable backlog of new and renewal claims had been resolved.
	An improved working relationship with the Benefits Agency and the Employment Service (now joined as Jobcentre Plus) is noted in the report.
	The report makes recommendations to help the council address the remaining weaknesses and to further improve the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit, as well as counter fraud activities.
	The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) inspection report on the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames was published on 26 September 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The report finds that the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames had made many improvements during the 2 years before the BFI inspection and since bringing the benefits service back in house after a period of outsourcing. In some areas this improvement was significant.
	These improvements include reductions in the time taken to process new and repeat claims and notifications of changes in circumstances. However, the council needs to improve further in these areas if it is to achieve its Best Value targets.
	Other improvements made by the council include the implementation of the BFI national model claim form and Verification Framework, sustained improvements in key customer services and a reduced backlog of work which has led to reductions in customer complaints.
	The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames still needs to improve its verification of claims, the quality of its fraud investigations and become more effective at recovering overpayments. This is critical if the #30.6m of benefit paid to 6,000 claimants is to be brought under tighter control.
	The report finds that the council had a clear prosecution policy to deter fraudsters but identifies weaknesses in the quality of fraud investigations. The report acknowledges the successful prosecution of fraudsters in 2001–02.
	Overall the report concludes that the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames has established a good platform from which it can make the necessary improvements.
	In 2000/01, the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames administered approximately #30.6 million in housing benefits.

Benefit Fraud

Kali Mountford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement about the inspection report of the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate in respect of (a) the London Borough of Enfield and (b) Wakefield Metropolitan District Council.

Malcolm Wicks: The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) inspection report on the London Borough of Enfield was published on 18 September 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The BFI reports that the council's management of the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit was poor with weaknesses in many areas.
	Access to the benefits system was not sound and the council did not ensure that claims were right from day one. Information was not routinely verified or cross checked and management was not monitoring performance. This significantly increased the risk of fraud and error at the outset of the claim.
	The council did not detect when payments went wrong and take prompt action to correct them with appropriate penalties to deter a recurrence. Delays in dealing with changes of circumstances have increased the number and level of preventable overpayments.
	Considerable delays occurred in the assessment and payment of benefit. Management was not monitoring the processes to ensure that bottlenecks and backlogs were quickly identified as they appeared. This caused hardships to claimants and by failing to make payments on account in appropriate cases the council increased this.
	Insufficient resources were devoted to recovering overpayments of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit. As a result, the council was failing to control the level of outstanding debt.
	The BFI also found that the council's counter fraud performance was poor. Weaknesses were identified in the management of the investigation team and the quality of the investigative work.
	The council is commended for its commitment to its anti-poverty strategy and for promoting the take up of benefit. Its dedicated team has helped Enfield residents to receive more than #12 million in new and additional welfare benefits since 1996.
	The report concludes that the council needs to improve the management and effectiveness of its working practices within the benefit service in order to deliver its corporate vision.
	The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) inspection report on Wakefield Metropolitan District Council was published on 9 October 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The report finds that in March 2001, the council completed a Best Value Review of the benefits function. The review identified a need to improve in key areas such as claims processing, management checking and overpayment administration. The report finds performance in these key areas is poor. However, BFI recognises the efforts being made by the council to improve performance.
	The council's practices for processing benefit claims differed across its 13 sites, and there was a 6 weeks backlog of work creating queries and complaints. The council was intending to centralise its benefit function as an answer to many of its problems, however insufficient plans for centralisation had been produced.
	Whilst the report finds examples of good practices, it found differing levels of performance and procedures across the council. The inconsistent verification of benefit claims and low levels of management checks were identified as key weaknesses, increasing the risk of fraud and error entering the benefit system.
	The council intends implementing the Verification Framework before March 2003 and it was improving its corporate performance measurement framework. These initiatives combined with centralisation should put the council in a position to provide a much improved benefits service.
	The report finds very poor performance in the council's administration of overpayments of benefit, with benefit debt increasing and errors being made. However, the council was enhancing its IT system to improve its performance in overpayment administration.
	The council had a sound approach to countering fraud and corruption, and had undertaken some good quality fraud prosecutions.
	The report concludes that there is a clear need for the council to improve its benefit performance as the inspection identified many cases of poor performance. However, BFI was encouraged that the council was aware of the challenges it was facing, and with the level of interest shown by elected Members, both in the inspection and the benefit service.
	In 1999–2000, Wakefield Metropolitan District Council administered approximately #65.2 million in housing benefits.

Benefit Fraud

Lawrie Quinn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement about the inspection report of the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate in respect of (a) Babergh and (b) Swale district councils.

Malcolm Wicks: The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) follow up inspection report on Babergh District Council was published on 10 October 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The BFI first inspected and published a report on Babergh District Council in April 2000.
	This report finds that Babergh District Council had made significant improvements since the first inspection. Despite backlogs of work, the council had made progress in its housing benefits administration and counter fraud work. Throughout the inspection, BFI identified improvements and good practices that had been implemented since the first inspection.
	The report finds that the council had introduced initiatives to raise awareness of housing benefits among its residents, and had reviewed its Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claim form.
	The council had introduced the Verification Framework, improving the collection and recording of evidence to support new claims for benefit, and it was identifying and checking any inconsistencies to reduce fraud and error. All new claims were subject to a 100 per cent. quality check.
	However, the report finds that the council needed to improve its evidence gathering for renewal benefit claims and not make awards before all the necessary evidence was collected.
	The report finds backlogs of work, arising from the simultaneous implementation of the Verification Framework and a new IT system for processing housing benefits claims, which were severely affecting the processing times for all claims.
	The report finds a marked improvement in counter fraud work, with investigators receiving Professionalism in Security training and a full range of investigations being undertaken. The District Auditor had reported satisfaction with the council's counter fraud measures.
	Overpayments had increased since the first inspection, mainly due to the backlogs of work and IT changes. Levels of recovery had dropped and overpayment cases were not well documented or subject to quality checks.
	In 2000–01, Babergh District Council administered approximately #12.8 million in housing benefits.
	The report makes recommendations to help the council address the remaining weaknesses and to further improve the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit, as well as counter fraud activities.
	The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) follow up inspection report on Swale Borough Council was published on 25 September 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The BFI first inspected and published a report on Swale Borough Council in April 2000. The report found that while the council demonstrated some good working practices, the efficiency and security of the benefits system was compromised by a backlog of work and a lack of a clear sense of direction and purpose in its counter fraud strategy. At that time, the council had undergone a period of significant change.
	This report finds that of the 40 recommendations made in the April 2000 report, the council had implemented 6 in full, partially implemented 24 and not implemented 10.
	The report commends Swale Borough Council for its commitment in clearing the backlog of work, which was having a detrimental effect during BFI's first inspection. This required a heavy investment in increasing and training its staffing on the benefit section.
	There have also been improvements in the council's benefit claim form, the levels of verification and the speed of processing claims and notifications of change of circumstances.
	There were still problems with the council's counter fraud operations. BFI reports that a lack of effective management had hampered the way that the unit operated. The report finds a general lack of management checking and controls to guard the system against fraud, error and abuse.
	The report finds significant problems with overpayments not being accurately classified and the situation had worsened since the first report. The council did not always impose the maximum deduction for the recovery of fraudulent overpayments.
	The counter fraud operation was not being sufficiently managed and there was minimal management checking and little direction during fraud investigations.
	The council's post opening operation was found to be insecure and BFI expresses concern to find that numerous recommendations made in this area in the first report remained unactioned.
	In conclusion, the council had only partially delivered the improvements that it said it would in its response to the Secretary of State following the publication of the BFI's first inspection report, published in April 2000.
	The report makes recommendations to help the council address the remaining weaknesses and to further improve the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit, as well as counter fraud activities.

Benefit Fraud

Dave Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement about the inspection report of the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate in respect of (a) Erewash Borough Council, (b) East Dumbartonshire Council and (c) St. Helens Metropolitan Borough Council.

Malcolm Wicks: The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) inspection report on the Erewash Borough Council was published on 26 September 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The report finds Erewash Borough Council failing to deliver an adequate and secure benefit service. There were significant weaknesses in the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit and counter fraud work. There were also significant backlogs of work.
	At the time of BFI's inspection, the council had been in a state of constant change for over 4 years, and no senior manager was in post with specific responsibility, or expertise in, housing benefits or counter fraud work. This lack of expertise and key personnel had resulted in a complete lack of strategic direction. Council Members were aware of these problems but the council had made slow progress to resolve the issues. The report finds earlier plans had proved to be of limited use and much rested on the appointment of new chief officers.
	Despite the serious lack of managerial involvement at a high level, the efforts of benefits staff must not be ignored as they devised procedures, which were a positive measure. They attempted to improve standards by implementing the Verification Framework, expanding customer services and organising occasional landlord forums. Although fragmented, these efforts were a positive step.
	There was a serious lack of control of benefits work. There were no quality or management checks, no formal procedures and little training. Staff resources were inadequate.
	The introduction of a new IT system was poorly planned and managed, and the system was not used to its full potential. Management information from the housing benefits IT system was unreliable and there were serious flaws in the security of the system.
	The report finds errors in all stages of the overpayment process, with little control or monitoring, and no one appointed with specific responsibility for overpayment work.
	The council had poor counter fraud performance in all aspects of its operation. Fraud investigations lacked depth and substance and this impaired its ability to prosecute fraudsters.
	Erewash Borough Council only fully implemented 9 of 30 recommendations, made by the District Auditor 3 years before the BFI inspection, to improve its counter fraud arrangements.
	The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) follow up inspection report on East Dunbartonshire Council was published on 7 October 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The BFI first inspected and published a report on East Dunbartonshire Council in March 1999. The report found that the council was a poor-performing authority that needed to design and develop a more secure and accurate benefits administration system and improve the quality of its benefits service.
	This report finds that the council had responded positively to the findings in the first report and had introduced some improvements in its administration of housing benefits. However, some key recommendations from the first inspection had not been properly addressed and minimal progress had been made in counter fraud work.
	The introduction of the Verification Framework in April 2001 had improved the evidence gathering process. However, the use of the same sub-standard claim form that was in place at the first inspection and poor staff training meant that the majority of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit awards were based on poor or inadequate evidence.
	There had been minimal improvement in counter fraud operations, which continued to be poor. Despite the introduction of a prosecution policy, no cases had been prosecuted and no other forms of sanctions had been considered. Weaknesses surrounding the council's post opening and cheque dispatch procedures continued to exist.
	However, the report finds that the council had significantly improved in the recovery of benefit overpayments from claimants and landlords who were still receiving benefit. The council was less effective at recovering overpayments from debtors who were no longer receiving benefit.
	The report concludes that while some progress has been made across benefits administration, it has in the main been slow. There is much to do to address the weaknesses identified at the follow up inspection and for those that remain outstanding from the first inspection. The council agreed to review the range of corporate duties allocated to the Benefits Manager to enable more management time to be given to improving its benefits service
	In 2000–01, East Dunbartonshire Council administered approximately #12.7 million in housing benefits.
	The report makes recommendations to help the council address the remaining weaknesses and to further improve the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit, as well as counter fraud activities.
	The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate's (BFI) follow up inspection report on St. Helens Metropolitan Borough Council was published on 8 October 2002 and copies of the report were placed in the Library.
	The BFI first inspected and published a report on St. Helens Metropolitan Borough Council in April 2000. The report found that the council needed to develop a more secure and accurate benefits administration system and improve the overall quality of its benefits service.
	This report finds that the council had responded positively and delivered all 16 major recommendations from the earlier BFI inspection. The report finds that the council had made significant progress and had delivered a major programme of change that had significantly raised the standards of its administration of housing benefits.
	Since the first inspection, the council had undertaken a Best Value Review of its benefits service and had introduced the Verification Framework. It had also increased management and staffing levels, reorganised the way it delivers benefits, and enhanced its IT systems.
	The council had also introduced a new claim form, and had introduced management quality checking to test the quality and accuracy of benefit awards. The council was also actively reducing the backlogs of work that had been affecting processing times and causing overpayments.
	The report finds that the verification process had improved significantly with 66 per cent. of cases examined containing proper evidence. Only 30 per cent. of cases were properly verified at the first inspection. The council plans to provide staff training to raise standards further.
	The council had introduced a benefits prosecution policy and had significantly improved its counter fraud operations, with the quality of its fraud investigations improving considerably since the first inspection. However, despite these improvements, outstanding overpaid benefit debt had increased and the council had brought few prosecutions against offenders and had made no use of other sanctions.
	The report concludes that there is scope for improvement across the council's benefit service but BFI was encouraged by the progress made since the first inspection.
	In 2000–01, St. Helens Metropolitan Borough Council administered approximately #51 million in housing benefits.
	The report makes recommendations to help the council address the remaining weaknesses and to further improve the administration of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit, as well as counter fraud activities.

Asbestos

Tony McWalter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he will lay regulations on the control of asbestos in the workplace.

Nick Brown: Draft copies of the regulations and a Code of Practice are available for hon. Members in the Vote Office. This issue is the subject of a debate on a Government motion on 24 October.

Housing Benefit

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average administrative cost was of delivering housing benefit for each London borough in each of the last three years; how many outstanding applications there are; and how many complaints were recorded.

Malcolm Wicks: The available information has been placed in the Library. Information on the number of complaints made to local authorities about their Housing Benefit administration are not collected centrally.
	However, in his Annual Report for 2001–02, the Local Government Ombudsman reported that complaints to him about Housing Benefit administration in England fell by a quarter on the previous year. Particular mention was made of the London Boroughs of Hackney, Islington and Lambeth which had accounted for 65 per cent. of complaints in the previous year. Complaints against those authorities dropped dramatically in 2001–02. Those against Hackney and Islington Councils fell by around a half, whilst those against Lambeth Council fell by nearly a quarter.

Housing Benefit

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment has been made by his Department of the performance of contractors in delivering housing benefit; and if he will publish it.

Malcolm Wicks: The Department has commissioned a review of the impact and effects of outsourcing on the efficiency of Housing and Council Tax Benefit administration and delivery.
	We expect the findings to be published in the summer of 2003.

DEFENCE

Job Locations

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many jobs under the remit of his Department in (a) the core department, (b) arms of the armed forces and their support staff, (c) non-departmental public bodies, (d) executive agencies and (e) independent statutory bodies, organisations and bodies financially sponsored by his Department and other such organisations, are located in (i) Scotland, (ii) England, excluding Greater London, (iii) Greater London, (iv) Wales, (v) Northern Ireland and (vi) overseas, broken down by (A) whole time equivalent jobs and (B) the percentage per individual department, body or organisation.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 24 July 2002
	The available information is given in the table below: As at 1 April 2001
	
		
			 Department/Body/Organisation Scotland London Rest of England Wales Northern Ireland Overseas 
			  No. (FTE) % No. (FTE) % No. (FTE) % No. (FTE) % No. (FTE) % No. (FTE) % 
		
		
			 Core Departments 3,130 8.2 4,840 12.6 23,220 60.6 710 1.9 3,060 8.0 3,360 8.8 
			 Armed Forces(2) 15,080 7.2 6,430 3.1 136,610 65.5 3,220 1.5 8,390 4.0 38,900 18.6 
			 Non-Departmental public bodies — — 250 64.6 140 36.2 — — — — — — 
			 Executive Agencies 6,290 10.8 3,290 5.7 43,470 74.7 4,070 7.0 100 0.2 960 1.7 
			 Independent Statutory Bodies Information Not Available 
			  
			 Total 24,500 8.0 14,810 4.8 203,440 66.6 8,000 2.6 11,550 3.8 43,220 14.1 
		
	
	Notes:
	1 Figures in the breakdown exclude 1875 MoD civilian staff, for whom allocation to a specific region is not possible.
	2 April 2001 figures for UK based Service staff are not available and these have been taken as at 1 July 2000, this conforms with previously published data in UKDS 2001
	3 The information required for the ''Independent Statutory Bodies'' can only be obtained at disproportionate costs.
	4 Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.

Creche Facilities

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 25 March 2002, Official Report, column 557W, regarding creche facilities provided by his Department, how much money was contributed in (a) 2000–01 and (b) 2001–02 to the costs of childcare schemes by (i) the Ministry of Defence and (ii) the Civil Service Modernisation Fund.

Lewis Moonie: The information regarding the Ministry of Defence's contribution towards the costs of childcare schemes is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. I regret I am therefore unable to provide a substantive answer under the terms of Exemption 9 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
	The Ministry of Defence has allocated some #900,000 of its Civil Service Modernisation Fund diversity grant to childcare related projects: #150,000 in 2000–2001 and #750,000 in 2001–2002.

HMS Nottingham

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects HMS Nottingham to return to its port of destination in the UK; if it will be repaired in the Naval facilities in Portsmouth; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: On current plans, the Type 42 Destroyer HMS Nottingham is expected to arrive in the United Kingdom on, or about, 12 December 2002. While a decision on the ship's future has yet to be made, there is no reason at this time to suppose that repairing her will not be worthwhile. We have therefore invited those UK shiprepair companies with the necessary in-depth knowledge and experience of maintaining and repairing Type 42 Destroyers and their systems to visit the ship to make their own assessments of the damage and tender for any repair work. This invitation has been issued without any commitment from the Ministry of Defence to proceed with the repairs should it not be cost effective to do so. One of the companies invited to visit Nottingham on this basis is Fleet Support Limited, the commercial operators of the Naval facilities at Portsmouth.

HMS Nottingham

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  to ask the Secretary of State what has been the cost of salvaging HMS Nottingham since she ran aground, excluding costs of repairs to the ship once in dry dock in the UK; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what the cost was of berthing HMS Nottingham in Newcastle; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what the cost was of towing HMS Nottingham from Lord Howe Island to Newcastle; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  what the cost was of bringing HMS Nottingham back to Britain on the heavy lift Swan; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The estimated cost of salvaging HMS Nottingham since she ran aground, excluding the costs of any repairs to the ship once in dry dock in the UK, has been some #9 million. This includes approximately #1.4 million to tow Nottingham from Lord Howe Island to Newcastle and berthing-related costs in Newcastle of some #0.4 million. In addition, it is estimated that the cost of returning Nottingham to the UK on the heavy lift ship will be about #3 million.

HMS Nottingham

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what has been the cost of flying home the crew from HMS Nottingham; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The total estimated cost of flying HMS Nottingham's crew home from Australia on commercial airlines is expected to be in the region of #200,000. Available RAF aircraft were also used to transport personnel back to the United Kingdom.

HMS Nottingham

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was of the accommodation for the crew of HMS Nottingham in Australia; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Since the grounding incident, HMS Nottingham's crew have been accommodated in service accommodation belonging to the Royal Australian Air Force. The bill for this accommodation has not yet been received, but costs are expected to be modest. From 19 October until the ship leaves Australia, essential members of the ship's crew will be accommodated in hotels in Sydney at an estimated cost of around #30,000.

Plutonium

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much plutonium owned by his Department has been (a) considered for export and (b) exported to the Valduc facility in France as part of a joint project with the United States Department of Energy and the Commissariat . . L'Energie Atomique and Cogema in France, for test assemblies for plutonium MOX fuel rods, since 31 January 2000.

Lewis Moonie: None.

Weapons Decontamination

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on Her Majesty's Government's contingency plans for the decontamination of British weapons systems covered by (a) Sarin, (b) Soman, (c) Ebola, (d) VX and (e) other similar long-lasting substances.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 21 October 2002
	In the first instance we seek to deter the use of chemical or biological warfare agents against our forces, or those of our Allies. We have made it plain that the United Kingdom would take an extremely serious view of this step and that it would invite a proportionately serious response.
	In the event of a release of chemical or biological agents we would seek to avoid direct exposure, and hence contamination, by using equipment and procedures that detect chemical or biological threats, warn of hazards and protect personnel. If exposure is unavoidable, individuals are equipped to decontaminate themselves and their personal equipment, and units to carry out decontamination to allow them to continue operating. Additional processes would be followed at the end of an operation.

Lightweight Mobile Artillery Weapon System Rocket

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the projected cost is of the assessment phase of the British Army's Lightweight Mobile Artillery Weapon System Rocket; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: I can confirm that the Lightweight Mobile Artillery Weapon System Rocket programme recently received initial gate approval to enter the Assessment Phase. The Defence Procurement Agency is currently in negotiations with the preferred bidder, which is a consortium led by INSYS. As negotiations are still underway, I am withholding the information requested under Exemption 7 of the Code of Practice on access to Government Information.

F35 Aircraft

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the F35 aircraft to reach the end of its service life.

Lewis Moonie: On current plans, the United Kingdom's Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft is expected to remain in service until the 2040s.

F35 Aircraft

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what aspects of the design, development, equipment, manufacture and maintenance of the F35 aircraft are included in his estimates of the through-life costs of acquiring and operating these aircraft; and what costs of their deployment and operation are not included in his estimates;
	(2)  what aspects of the design, development, manufacture, equipment and maintenance of the F35 aircraft were included in the intention to acquire up to 150 aircraft at a cost of up to #10 billion announced by his Department on 30 September;

Lewis Moonie: We currently estimate that the whole life cost of the United Kingdom's planned force of Joint Strike Fighters will be up to #28 billion in full resource terms, through to 2042. This includes acquisition costs of up to #10 billion dependent on aircraft numbers and how they are to be supported through life.
	Development costs include the United Kingdom's contribution to the JSF Prime Contractor (Lockheed Martin) as covered by the System Development and Demonstration MOU, which we signed with the US in January 2001. They also include funding for the integration of certain United Kingdom weapons systems to be selected in due course, securing JSF's compatibility with United Kingdom Command and Control arrangements and ensuring compliance with our safety and environmental requirements.
	Acquisition costs include the manufacture of complete aircraft including their engines and also certain related activities such as the provision of flight simulators. The production of weapons for operational use is not included within the whole life cost of JSF.
	Maintenance and other in-service support costs are not included in the #10Bn but are in the #28 billion. The in-service support costs include the provision of spares, fuel, training, storage, aircrew, ground-crew and station personnel, and flying station service costs including utilities, and the maintenance of runways and hangars.

F35 Aircraft

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what payments he expects to make in each financial year from 2003–04 to 2011–12 in respect of the design, development, manufacture and purchase of the F35 aircraft;
	(2)  what payments he has made and plans to make in the present financial year in respect of the design, development and manufacture of the F35 aircraft.
	(3)  what payments he expects to make in respect of the F35 aircraft in the financial year 2012–13 and each succeeding financial year while the aircraft is in service.

Lewis Moonie: We anticipate that the whole life cost of the United Kingdom's planned force of Joint Strike Fighters will be up to #28 billion in full resource terms. This includes up to #10 billion for the development and manufacture of Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft to meet our Future Joint Combat Aircraft (FJCA) requirement, dependent on the number of aircraft acquired and how they are to be supported through life. Of this figure, we forecast that some #2 billion will be spent on development activity.
	I am withholding the information regarding the annual profile of this expenditure under Exemptions 2 and 7 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Indonesia

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussion he has had with the Indonesian military forces during the past year; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: Defence contacts with Indonesia over the past year have been focused on taking forward a reform programme within the Indonesian armed forces under the aegis of the inter-Departmental Global Conflict Prevention Fund. This has the objective of promoting the emergence of democratically accountable and professional security forces. Contacts have included visits to the United Kingdom by Indonesian politicians, civilian government officials, police and military officers to discuss issues such as defence management, promoting greater transparency and accountability of military expenditure, rules of engagement and the role of the military in support of the civil authorities. United Kingdom visitors to Indonesia have covered similar issues. In addition, two Indonesian officers and one civilian attended a United Kingdom-sponsored ''Managing Defence in a Democracy'' course in September 2002 in Singapore and two Indonesian officers attended a United Kingdom-sponsored regional peacekeeping course in Bangkok in August 2002.

PFI

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many private finance initiative schemes are agreed and operating; for what projects within his Department private finance initiatives have been agreed; what the value of each project is; what the start date of each of the projects is; what the life of the contract is; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence has signed 45 PFI deals with a total capital value of #2.3 billion. The deals are listed below.
	
		
			 Name # Million Financial Year Signed Contract Length (Years) Operational 
		
		
			 Germany White Fleet 52.00 1995 5 Apr-96 
			 Storage Facilities 21.90 1996 40 Dec-01 
			 Hazardous Stores Information System (HSIS) 1.00 1996 10.5 Dec-97 
			 MHE Vehicles 1.00 1996 5 Dec-96 
			 TAFMIS (IT) 41.00 1996 10 97/98 
			 RAF White Fleet 35.00 1996 5 Jul-96 
			 DHFS (Helicopter Flying Sch.) 73.50 1996 15 Apr-97 
			 Tidworth Water & Sewerage 6.00 1997 20 Sep-98 
			 Hawk Simulator 19.00 1997 15 Dec-98 
			 Electronic Messaging Service (Armymail) 33.00 1997 10 Sep-97 
			 DFTS 70.00 1997 10 97/98 
			 Medium Support Helicopter Aircrew Training Facility 
			 (MSHATF) 114.00 1997 40 98/99 
			 Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency (AFPAA) 264.00 1997 12 Jan-98 
			 Joint Services Command and Staff College 93.00 1998 30 Sep-00 
			 RAF Lyneham Sewerage 4.00 1998 25 Aug-98 
			 RAF Fylingdales (Power) 7.00 1998 25 Yes 
			 Yeovilton Family Quarters 8.00 1998 30 Jun-99 
			 RAF Mail 12.00 1998 10 Apr-00 
			 RAF Cosford/Shawbury Family Quarters 15.00 1998 25 Dec-99 
			 RAF Lossiemouth Family Quarters 24.50 1998 20 Aug-99 
			 Attack Helicopter Training 165.00 1998 25/30 No 
			 Light Aircraft Flying Training (LAFT) (Bulldog) 20.00 1998 10 Apr-99 
			 Central Scotland Family Quarters 25.00 1999 * Jan-01 
			 NRTA Fire Training 22.50 1999 * Dec-99 
			 Tornado GR4 Simulator 61.70 1999 34 Oct-01 
			 Army Foundation College (AFC) 73.00 1999 30 May-00 
			 DIS/IT (Touchstone) 5.00 1999 * Dec-99 
			 Commercial Satellite Communication Service—INMARSAT 2.50 2000 5 Apr-01 
			 Tri-Service Materials Handling 35.00 2000 10 Nov-00 
			 Defence Animal Centre (DAC) 11.00 2000 * Jan-02 
			 RAF Sentry E3D Aircrew 7.00 2000 30 Oct-01 
			 Lynx Aircrew Training 15.00 2000 12 No 
			 Defence Electronic Commerce Service (DECS) 9.00 2000 10 Dec-00 
			 Main Building Redevelopment Headquarters 415.00 2000 30 Aug-00 
			 Naval Comms 55.00 2000 27 No 
			 Tri-Service White Fleet 40.00 2000 10 Aug-01 
			 Wattisham Family Quarters 34.00 2001 * Mar-02 
			 Defence Housing Executive IS (DOMIS) 11.00 2001 10 Oct-01 
			 Astute Class Training Service (ACTS) 41.00 2001 * No 
			 Bristol, Bath, Portsmouth Family Quarters 72.00 2001 * No 
			 Heavy Equipment Transporter (HET) 54.90 2001 20 No 
			 Marine Support to Range and Aircrew services 11.30 2001 10 (with an 
			 option to 
			 extend to 15) Apr-02 
			 Materials Handling Equipment Services (Follow on) 38.80 2002 8 Aug-02 
			 Strategic Sealift (Ro-Ro Ferries) 175.00 2002 25 No 
			 Field Electrical Power Supplies (FEPS) 57.87 2002 * No 
			 45 Signed deals 2,359.47 
		
	
	Note:
	* Where details of contract length are not held centrally for all projects, I will seek the information and write to the hon. Member when it becomes available.

Iraq

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what preparatory work has been carried out within his Department to facilitate the deployment of the UK armed forces in the event of a war with Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Geoff Hoon: No decision regarding the commitment of United Kingdom Armed Forces to any potential military operations in Iraq has been taken. Military action is neither imminent nor inevitable. The Government of Iraq is being given every chance to comply with its obligations under United Nations Security Council Resolutions.
	However, as my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has made clear, alongside the diplomacy, there must be genuine preparedness and planning to take action if diplomacy fails. We routinely take prudent steps to ensure that our armed forces are ready, fully trained and fully equipped for any actions that they may be called upon to undertake.

Watchkeeper

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the equipment and systems procured for Watchkeeper will conform to the proposed NATO STANAG 4586.

Lewis Moonie: The United Kingdom is contributing to the development of NATO STANAG 4586 that relates to the definition of Standard Interfaces of Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) Control Systems for NATO UAV interoperability. Whilst this has yet to go through the ratification process it is intended that the equipment and systems procured for Watchkeeper will conform to the principles of interoperability defined therein.

Watchkeeper

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the successful bidders for the assessment phase of Watchkeeper will be announced.

Lewis Moonie: The bids for the Assessment phase of Watchkeeper are currently being assessed and it is hoped to announce the result shortly.

Tracer Programme User Trials

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much the UK/US Tracer Programme user trials will cost; how long these trials will be; when the results are expected to be published; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: Technology demonstrations for the TRACER programme took place during June and July 2002. The cost of these trials was included in the overall Assessment Phase contracts valued at some #90 million. Final reports have now been delivered and technology maturity data that they contain will inform decisions within the Department about how individual technologies might be applied to future equipment programmes. The results contain commercially sensitive proprietary information and there are no plans to publish them.

Armed Forces (Strength)

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Army and (c) the Royal Air Force were aged (i) under 18, (ii) 18 to 19, (iii) 20 to 24, (iv) 25 to 29, (v) 30 to 34, (vi) 35 to 39, (vii) 40 to 44, (viii) 45 to 49 and (ix) 50 years and over on 1 April each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The percentage of the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Army and (c) the Royal Air Force by age categories are listed in the following tables:
	(a) Royal Navy
	
		
			  Navy Officers 
			 Months April 2002 July 2001 July 2000 July 1999 July 1998 July 1997 
			 Age (yrs) Percentage 
		
		
			 Under 18 – – – – – – 
			 18 to 19 0.9 1.1 0.8 0.7 0.4 0.3 
			 20 to 24 9.4 8.4 8.0 7.9 8.0 8.7 
			 25 to 29 18.0 18.5 18.9 19.5 19.7 20.1 
			 30 to 34 17.7 18.6 19.2 19.4 19.9 19.4 
			 35 to 39 19.7 19.5 19.7 19.7 19.9 20.1 
			 40 to 44 16.9 16.9 16.4 15.5 14.4 13.1 
			 45 to 49 10.7 10.2 10.3 10.8 11.1 12.0 
			 50 and over 6.7 6.8 6.6 6.6 6.7 6.3 
			  
			 Grand Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	
		
			  Navy Other Ranks 
			 Months April 2002 July 2001 July 2000 July 1999 July 1998 July 1997 
			 Age (yrs) Percentage 
		
		
			 Under 18 2.8 2.3 2.6 2.6 2.5 1.8 
			 18 to 19 7.9 7.9 8.0 7.5 6.0 3.9 
			 20 to 24 24.3 22.7 2– 18.4 18.5 20.7 
			 25 to 29 18.0 20.1 23.2 25.3 27.2 28.2 
			 30 to 34 20.3 20.6 19.8 19.4 19.7 19.7 
			 35 to 39 17.7 17.8 18.3 18.9 18.5 18.4 
			 40 to 44 6.3 5.9 5.5 4.9 4.6 4.2 
			 45 to 49 2.1 2.1 2.2 2.4 2.5 2.6 
			 50 and over 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.4 
			  
			 Grand Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	(b) Army
	
		
			  Army Officers 
			 Months April 2002 July 2001 July 2000 July 1999 July 1998 July 1997 
			 Age (yrs) Percentage 
		
		
			 Under 18 – – 0.1 – – – 
			 18 to 19 1.3 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.0 0.9 
			 20 to 24 11.2 11.1 11.1 10.1 12.0 11.8 
			 25 to 29 20.5 21.0 21.7 22.1 21.5 21.2 
			 30 to 34 14.4 13.9 13.8 14.5 14.5 14.7 
			 35 to 39 14.3 14.7 14.5 14.6 14.2 14.2 
			 40 to 44 17.0 16.8 16.5 16.2 15.7 15.2 
			 45 to 49 12.0 12.0 11.3 11.6 11.4 12.6 
			 50 and over 9.3 9.4 9.9 9.8 9.8 9.4 
			 Grand Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	
		
			  Army Other Ranks 
			 Months April 2002 July 2001 July 2000 July 1999 July 1998 July 1997 
			 Age (yrs) Percentage 
		
		
			 Under 18 5.8 4.8 4.4 5.0 4.4 3.8 
			 18 to 19 11.0 11.0 11.5 11.5 10.7 9.1 
			 20 to 24 28.5 28.2 27.2 26.4 26.5 28.0 
			 25 to 29 19.6 20.9 22.9 24.5 26.6 28.5 
			 30 to 34 18.3 18.6 18.1 17.8 17.7 17.1 
			 35 to 39 13.5 13.4 13.0 12.3 11.8 11.2 
			 40 to 44 2.8 2.6 2.3 2.0 1.8 1.7 
			 45 to 49 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 
			 50 and over 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 
			  
			 Grand Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	(c) Royal Air Force
	
		
			  RAF Officers 
			 Months April 2002 July 2001 July 2000 July 1999 July 1998 July 1997 
			 Age (yrs) Percentage 
		
		
			 Under 18 – – – – – – 
			 18 to 19 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 
			 20 to 24 8.1 7.8 7.1 6.2 5.7 6.0 
			 25 to 29 14.1 14.8 15.7 16.3 17.4 17.9 
			 30 to 34 20.8 21.1 21.6 22.5 22.8 22.4 
			 35 to 39 21.5 20.9 20.1 19.4 19.0 18.3 
			 40 to 44 13.7 13.3 13.0 13.1 12.8 13.0 
			 45 to 49 10.5 10.4 10.3 10.4 10.8 11.4 
			 50 and over 10.8 11.3 11.9 11.8 11.4 10.9 
			  
			 Grand Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	
		
			  RAF Other Ranks 
			 Months April 2002 July 2001 July 2000 July 1999 July 1998 July 1997 
			 Age (yrs) Percentage 
		
		
			 Under 18 1.3 1.1 0.8 1.0 0.9 0.6 
			 18 to 19 5.1 4.9 5.0 4.9 3.7 2.4 
			 20 to 24 19.7 18.5 16.3 13.6 12.2 13.6 
			 25 to 29 16.4 18.0 21.0 24.3 28.4 30.6 
			 30 to 34 21.3 22.0 22.1 22.0 22.0 22.6 
			 35 to 39 19.6 19.8 19.9 19.9 19.1 17.3 
			 40 to 44 11.0 10.2 9.3 8.9 8.3 7.8 
			 45 to 49 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.5 3.3 3.1 
			 50 and over 1.8 1.9 1.9 2.0 2.0 2.1 
			  
			 Grand Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 
		
	
	Note:
	– denotes 0

Civil Service Pay

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what has been the average pay rise for civil servants in his Department over each of the last five years; and what pay rises have been approved for each of the years (a) 2002–03, (b) 2003–04, (c) 2004–05 and (d) 2005–06; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: The percentage pay rise for industrial and non-industrial civil servants in the Ministry of Defence is set out in the table below. The figures exclude trading fund and other agencies which have responsibility for their own pay bargaining. They show the increases to the Ministry of Defence paybill over each of the last five years and the increases recently agreed for the years (a) 2002–2003, (b) 2003–2004, (c) 2004–2005 and (d) 2005–2006. Up to 2001, there were separate pay systems for the two groups of staff, but these have been harmonised from 2002.
	
		
			 Year % increase to paybill of non-industrial staff % increase to paybill of industrial staff 
		
		
			 1997 2.7 3.0 
			 1998 2.5 3.3 
			 1999 2.7 3.5 
			 2000 2.6 3.5 
			 2001 2.7 3.7 
			 2002 3.2 
			 2003 3.1 
			 2004 3.1 
			 2005 3.1

TRANSPORT

Departmental Websites

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the website links associated with his Department, including sites now dormant or closed, and indicating whether they are live, dormant or closed; what the start up costs were for each site listed; what the operating costs were in each year since start up for each site; which company hosted each site; what assessment takes place for each site; which company does the assessment; if he will place the assessment reports in the Library; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: My Department has a number of web sites in addition to the Department for Transport web site (www.dft.gov.uk). It is not possible to state the start up costs as the site has been created out of the former DTLR (and before that, DETR) web site. The annual cost of running the web site is currently #85,000 (excluding staff costs). The web hosting company is EduServ, who are based in Bath. There has been no assessment of the DfT web site, as it has only existed since the creation of the Department earlier this year.
	Because not all sites are managed centrally, information about every web site could only be provided at disproportionate cost. However, the following are primary sites listed on our main web site and are live unless specified:
	
		
			 Air Accident Investigation Branch www.aaib.gov.uk 
			 Airports consultation www.airconsult.gov.uk 
			 Bad Jobs (transport publicity spoof site) www.badjobs.co.uk 
			 Campaign for Integrated Transport www.cfit.gov.uk 
			 Civil Aviation Authority www.caa.co.uk 
			 Department for Transport, Local www.dtlr.gov.uk 
			 Government and the Regions (dormant) 
			 Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee www.dptac.gov.uk 
			 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency www.dvla.gov.uk 
			 Driving Standards Agency www.dsa.gov.uk 
			 Hedgehogs child road safety www.hedgehogs.gov.uk 
			 Highway Code www.highwaycode.gov.uk 
			 Highways Agency www.highways.gov.uk 
			 In Town Without My Car (dormant) www.itwmc.gov.uk 
			 Maritime Accident Investigation Branch www.maib.gov.uk 
			 Maritime and Coastguard Agency www.mcagency.gov.uk 
			 Northern Lighthouse Board www.nlb.org.uk 
			 Strategic Rail Authority www.sra.gov.uk 
			 THINK campaign www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk 
			 Traffic Area Network www.tan.gov.uk 
			 Transport for London www.londontransport.co.uk 
			 Trinity House Lighthouse Service www.trinityhouse.co.uk 
			 Vehicle Certification Agency www.vca.gov.uk 
			 Vehicle Inspectorate www.via.gov.uk

Public Bodies

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people are employed by (a) the Health and Safety Commission, (b) the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Council and (c) the Rail Passengers Council; what the annual budget of each has been for each year since 1997–98 and its projected budget for the next financial year; and if he will make a statement on the role and terms of reference of each.

David Jamieson: The Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) are statutory advisers to the Department for Transport on the transport and mobility needs of disabled people. The Committee was set up under S.125 of the Transport Act 1985 and it is also recognised in a number of other Acts including the Railways Act 1993 and the Transport Act 2000.
	DPTAC does not employ staff direct. The Department for Transport supports the Secretariat and administrative functions of the Committee and staff from the Department are appointed to those posts. Until the 2000–01 Financial Year the Committee's costs were not separately identified, but the cost to the Department since then has been: #215K (00–01) and #265K (01–02). The budget for this year is #289K and this is likely to remain the same for the following Financial Year.
	The Rail Passengers Council (RPC) was set up in its current form by the Railways Act 1993, with its powers and name amended by the Transport Act 2000. The Council along with the Rail Passengers Committees—whose work it co-ordinates—is the statutory watchdog protecting and promoting the interests of rail passengers. Its statutory duties are set out in sections 76 and 77 of the Railways Act 1993, as amended by the Transport Act 2000.
	The Council is finalising a new mission statement and long-term goals, on which it will be consulting later in the year.
	The Council's mission statement and aims are set out in its annual report. Copies of which are available in the House Libraries.
	At present the Council employs 21 permanent and fixed term staff. It is currently sponsored by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) and the details of the overall annual budgets for the Council and Committees are as follows:
	97–98—#1.6m
	98–99—#1.8m
	99–00—#2.25m
	00–01—#2.9m
	01–02—#5m
	02–03—#6m
	The budget for the next financial year has yet to be determined and is subject to discussions between the RPC and the SRA later in the year.
	The Health and Safety Commission is sponsored by the Department of Work and Pensions.

Water-diesel Emulsion Fuels

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research has been conducted and is planned by and for his Department into the (a) environmental and (b) economic benefits of the use of water-diesel emulsion fuels in public transport vehicles; and if he will place copies in the Library.

David Jamieson: Following discussions with a producer of water-diesel emulsion fuel, some limited testing of their fuel was carried out as part of a much wider particulate research programme commissioned by this Department in partnership with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) and the Oil Companies European Organisation for Environmental Health and Safety (CONCAWE). The results of those tests are included in an Annex to the report on the Particulate Research Programme 1998–2001 which was published in May 2001. I am arranging for copies of the Summary Report, including the full report on CD, and the relevant Annex from the full report to be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Water-diesel Emulsion Fuels

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations have been received from, and what discussions have been had with, (a) the bus industry, (b) local authorities, (c) Transport for London, (d) passenger transport executives and (e) the Treasury on the role of water-diesel emulsion fuels in public transport vehicles.

David Jamieson: The Department has had discussions with Transport for London and has received enquiries from other bus operators about the use of water-diesel emulsion fuels in public transport vehicles. The Department is aware that diesel emulsions can deliver some environmental benefits, in particular through reduced NOx and emissions of particulate mass but there is evidence of increased hydrocarbons and ultra-fine particle emissions. There is an emerging view among medical experts that, potentially, ultra-fine particles may have a significant effect on human health. Therefore, until the health effects are clearer, the Department has some reservations about the wider use of these fuels.

Enterprise Bill

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment has been made by (a) his Department and (b) the Strategic Rail Authority of the likely effects of the forthcoming Enterprise Bill upon the railway industry; and what plans there are to respond to them.

David Jamieson: I am not aware of any likely effects unique to the railway industry. The particular circumstances of the industry were taken into account in the preparation of the legislation. Both the Department and the Strategic Rail Authority have been consulted during the passage of the Bill.

Rail Passengers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his Department projects the level of rail passenger (a) journeys, (b) kilometres and (c) passengers in the United Kingdom will be by 2004–05; and how these figures were calculated.

David Jamieson: The targets for national rail set out in the Ten Year Plan include increasing rail use (measured in passenger kilometres) from 2000 levels by 50 per cent. by 2010. The latest official forecasts for rail passenger kilometres growth to 2010 were set out in the Ten Year Plan, with detail on the method of their calculation in ''Transport 2010—The Background Analysis'', copies of which are in the Library. There are no official forecasts to 2005.

Rail Passengers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment has been made of the performance of the (a) Rail Passengers Council and (b) the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Council; and what reports are published on their performance.

David Jamieson: Sponsorship and external assessment of the work of the Rail Passengers Council are matters for the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA). The Council is finalising a new mission statement and long-term goals, on which it will be consulting later in the year.
	The Council's mission statement and aims are set out in its annual report. Copies of which are available in the House Libraries.
	The Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee produces an annual report covering the work they do and copies of those reports are placed in the Library. In addition, in accordance with Cabinet Office guidance on reviewing non-departmental public bodies, a formal review of the DPTAC is being carried out this autumn.

Rail Passengers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people are employed by (a) the Rail Passengers' committees and (b) the Traffic Commissioners; what their role and terms of reference are; what their annual budgets were for each year since 1997–98; and what their projected budgets are for 2003–04.

David Jamieson: (a) The Rail Passengers Committees have 45 permanent and fixed term staff. The work of Rail Passengers Committees are co-ordinated by the Rail Passengers Council. The Council and Committees are the statutory watchdog protecting and promoting the interests of rail passengers. Their statutory duties are set out in sections 76 and 77 of the Railways Act 1993, as amended by the Transport Act 2000.
	The Council and Committees mission statements and aims are set out in their annual reports. Copies of the annual reports for the Council and the Committees for Scotland and Wales are available in the House Libraries, as required by legislation. I will arrange for the annual reports of the remaining committees to henceforth also be made available through the House Libraries.
	The Council is finalising a new mission statement and long-term goals for it and the Committees and will be consulting on them later in the year.
	.
	(b) The Traffic Commissioners do not employ staff. The Secretary of State provides administrative support for them through the Traffic Area Network. Traffic Commissioners are licensing authorities for operators of heavy goods vehicles and public service vehicles under the Goods Vehicles (Licensing Operators) Act 1995 and the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981 respectively. Budgets were:
	
		
			  (#000) 
		
		
			 1997/98: #9,400 
			 1998/99: #9,483 
			 1999/00: #10,184 
			 2000/01: #11,047 
			 2001/02: #12,533 
			 2002/03: #12,437 
		
	
	The budget for 2003/4 is not yet known.

Road Casualties (Herefordshire)

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action he is taking as a result of the increase in 2001 in the number of people killed and seriously injured on roads in Herefordshire.

David Jamieson: There was a 2 per cent. reduction in the number of road deaths and serious injuries across Britain as a whole between 2000 and 2001. The number has now been cut by 15 per cent. from the baseline for the 40 per cent. target reduction that we want to achieve by 2010.
	The Government remains firmly committed to that target and to delivering the national measures necessary to achieve it. However, local highway authorities are best placed to explain the likely reasons for any year to year changes in their area and to supply details of local measures that are being taken to reduce road accidents and casualties.

Air Passengers

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will estimate this impact on the forecast for total United Kingdom air passengers in 2030 if the assumption in his consultation paper of a 1.5 per cent. annual fall in the cost of air travel were replaced by an assumed increase in the cost of 1 per cent. a year.

David Jamieson: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The estimate of forecast total UK demand for air travel in 2030 is based on a 1 per cent. per annum reduction in air fares in real terms over the forecasting period, as noted in paragraph 5.9 of the consultation document ''The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom: South East.''

Aviation Fuel

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will estimate the total United Kingdom air passenger demand in 2030 if a tax, equivalent to the current level of duty on unleaded petrol, were imposed on aviation fuel in 2015 and a sales tax of 17.5 per cent. were imposed on airline tickets for United Kingdom flight departures at the same date.

David Jamieson: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The Government is committed to ensuring that the aviation industry meets its environmental costs. Since civil aviation is a international industry, the Government's approach is to support multilateral action through ICAO to end the exemption from tax for international aviation fuel. Unilateral action would create market distortions, such as ''tankering'' of extra fuel from aboard to avoid tax, and would have limited environmental benefits. The Government has given an undertaking not to remove zero rating for VAT purposes of international air (and sea) transport. In the consultation document, The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom:South East, it is estimated that policies to meet the contribution of aircraft emissions towards climate change would reduce demand by around 10 per cent.

Traffic Lights

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will place in the Library a copy of the national guidelines on the phasing of traffic lights.

David Jamieson: holding answer 21 October 2002
	My Department issues guidance to highway authorities on the general principles of control by traffic lights, including where pedestrian facilities are provided. Guidance is contained in Technical Advice Notes TA/15/81 and TA/16/81, which are part of the Highways Agency's Design Manual for Roads and Bridges. Copies of these Technical Advice Notes have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	It is for individual highway authority to decide on the phasing of traffic lights on their roads, depending on the circumstances at each site where they are used.

Transport Infrastructure

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with (a) Transport for London, (b) the Mayor of London and (c) Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on transport infrastructure to support the regeneration of the London Riverside Thames Gateway Zone of Change.

David Jamieson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport has discussions from time to time with ministerial colleagues and with the Mayor of London, who is chairman of Transport for London, on a wide range of issues of common interest.

School Transport

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment has been made of the potential of (a) amending existing regulations and (b) introducing new regulations to (i) reduce the cost of provision and (ii) increase the availability of school transport vehicles, including yellow school buses.

David Jamieson: Regulations for buses provide minimum safety and accessibility standards for all passengers and in some circumstances dedicated transport for children requires additional features such as seat belts.
	The current regime allows education authorities the flexibility to use the most appropriate means of transport for schoolchildren, whether on dedicated vehicles or by using existing services.
	My Department has recently commissioned independent consultants to evaluate the American-style yellow school bus pilots which First is running. The objectives of the evaluation include comparing the daily cost per capita to local authorities of running a First pilot vehicle to that of running a traditional school contract vehicle. The study is expected to report in August 2003.

School Transport

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what (a) amendments to regulations and (b) new regulations (i) have been introduced and (ii) are planned relating to vehicle standards for school transport vehicles, including yellow school buses.

David Jamieson: There is no specific category of School bus in regulations. Amendments to the Road Vehicle (Construction and Use) Regulations in 1996 require minibuses or coaches used for the transport of groups of more than three children on organised trips to be fitted with seat belts. In many cases this would include vehicles used for trips to and from schools. Further changes to these regulations require all new buses and coaches which are not certified to carry standing passengers to be fitted with seat belts from October 2001.
	The Department has recently consulted on the reform of national regulations and approval schemes for the construction and use of minibuses, buses and coaches. The main purpose of these changes is to simplify the current regulatory structure and align our requirements with those common in the rest of Europe. Whilst these proposals do not differentiate between the uses to which buses and coaches are put they will effect all such vehicles including those used for school transport.

Road Signs

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment has been made of the impact of changes in the density of road signs on the road network upon (a) road traffic speed, (b) congestion and (c) pollution; and if he will place copies of related correspondence in the Library.

David Jamieson: I am not aware of any such assessment, or of any work suggesting that density of signing might affect traffic speeds, congestion or pollution.

Transport Area Network

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what changes are planned to the regulatory framework of the operating, licensing and compliance systems under the Transport Area Network; what consultation has taken place and is planned in relation to changes; and what discussions have taken place in relation to changes which (a) have taken place and (b) are planned.

David Jamieson: The regulatory framework for operators of goods and passenger service vehicles is contained in the Goods Vehicle (Licensing of Operators) Act 1995 and the Public Passenger Vehicle Act 1981. In January 2001 Regulations were made to allow illegally operated heavy goods vehicles to be impounded. Following consultation, we are in the process of making regulations to increase fees relating to the licensing of operators and the registration of bus services. We are currently consulting on regulatory changes to facilitate the registration of flexibly routed bus services. We are planning to clarify and extend the categories of exemptions to goods O-licensing as soon as consultation has been completed. We continue to keep the systems under review with a view to improvement and the easing of the regulatory burden on industry.

Transport Area Network

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what changes have been made to the timetable for the development and introduction of the Transport Area Network; what the reasons have been for these changes; and what costs were incurred as a result;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the new systems which (a) have been implemented and (b) are planned to be introduced as part of the Transport Area Network;
	(3)  when the new finance system for the transport industry under the auspices of the Transport Area Network was introduced; what changes there have been to the timetable for introduction and nature of this scheme; and what assessment (a) has been made and (b) is planned of its progress.

David Jamieson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 21 October 2002, Official Report, c. 21W. The Traffic Area Network computer system (TAN21) contains a financial module, which was delivered in February 2002, 3 months later than originally planned. It is for internal business use and does not provide any access for the transport industry. The delays have been caused by procurement, infrastructure, software issues and extensive testing.

Transport Area Network

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the Transport Area Network is due to end its status as a part of the Department; and when he plans to make a decision on its future status.

David Jamieson: The Traffic Area Network is not due to end its status as part of the Department for Transport. I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Waveney (Mr. Blizzard) on 23 July 2002, Official Report, columns 964–65W.

Transport Area Network

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research (a) has been conducted and (b) is planned by and for his Department on the progress of the Transport Area Network; and if he will place copies of completed research in the Library.

David Jamieson: There has been no research and none is planned.

Community Railways

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions have taken place with the railway industry on the directives on (a) European Rail Agency Interoperability and Safety and (b) the Development of Community Railways being discussed within the European Parliament; and if he will place related documentation in the Library.

David Jamieson: Many railway industry parties responded to my Department's consultation exercise on the 2nd railway package, which ran from May to 23 August 2002. Copies of the consultation document and the replies (excluding those from respondents who have requested confidentiality) are being placed in the libraries of the House. In addition, my officials have participated in a number of seminars on these proposals organised by the industry and have held discussions with individual parties.

Community Railways

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what submissions have been made by his Department to the (a) European Commission and (b) European Parliament on the Directive on the Development of Community Railways being discussed within the European Parliament; and if he will place copies in the Library.

David Jamieson: No written submissions have been made to the European Commission. However, Ministers and officials from my Department participate on a regular basis in Council meetings convened by the Presidency to discuss these elements of the Commission's proposed Second Rail Package. The European Commission is represented at those meetings
	My officials provided written briefing to UK Members of the European Parliament on these proposals in April, July and September 2002. I will arrange for these sets of briefing to be placed in the libraries of the House.

Strategy and Work Programme

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps have been taken to implement the DVO Blueprint Strategy and Work Programme; and what assessment has been made of its implementation.

David Jamieson: We have begun a programme of work to take forward the DVO Blueprint Strategy. This programme includes around 40 IT projects which will help to meet the government's e-business targets for 2005 by providing drivers and operators with new electronic services such as, for example, the opportunity to re-license their vehicles using the phone or the internet. Progress on this programme of work is monitored and reported regularly. We will also be conducting extensive research with our customers to ensure that these new services continue to meet their requirements.

Transport Direct

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to disseminate findings from market research to support Transport Direct.

David Jamieson: The current programme of market research to support Transport Direct is being completed. The results of these will be published by the within 2 months and will be available on the department's website. (http://www.dft.gov.uk/itwp/transdirect/index.htm)
	A further research project is planned which will look at usability aspects. The usability of a website can be judged by looking at whether the content is useful to the website user; and whether it is easy to use the website, in terms of how the content is presented and how the information is structured

Transport Direct

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the research projects which have been, are being, and are planned to be conducted by and for his Department related to Transport Direct.

David Jamieson: There are two main themes to the research being carried out by Transport Direct, those that directly support the Transport Direct programme, and others where we provide a supporting role to other organisations, which will help provide the ambitions of Transport Direct.
	We are currently undertaking a programme of market research to support Transport Direct. This will inform us on what features and specific characteristics the service should possess from the point of view of the public. The results of these will be published within the next 2 months and will be available on the department's website. A further research project is planned which will look at usability aspects. The usability of a website can be judged by looking at whether the content is useful to the website user; and whether it is easy to use the website, in terms of how the content is presented and how the information is structured
	The results of previous research can be found on the Department's website http://www.dft.gov.uk/itwp/transdirect/index.htm. These include a review of existing traveller information system and a project looking at how cycling can be incorporated into journey planners.
	The work on providing a business case for bus real-time is continuing, the business case will quantify the benefit of such systems. Recommendations for the business case are due for completion within the next 2 months.
	Transport Direct also has research work to support traveline and Journey Solutions. Work done by these organisations will contribute towards the goals of Transport Direct.
	Current Research
	Traveline: Customer research into current and future service specifications
	This research project is assessing issues that traveline may need to address to ensure effective delivery to the customer. This includes an assessment of extending the future minimum opening hours for traveline; identifying the requirements for existing traveline customers; and establishing the extent of information that needs to be given by traveline if we to encourage greater use of public transport, among public transport users and non-public transport users.
	Planned Research
	Standard of Trunk Journey Solutions provided by traveline and associated costs
	The Department for Transport wishes to assess the extent to which the national requirements placed on traveline for the provision of trunk service information (i.e. data about the national rail and coach network) have been achieved. The requirements state that the traveline system must provide answers that are consistent with the information provided by the respective national trunk service information providers (i.e. Go By Coach, Scottish Citylink and National Rail Enquiry Service).
	PlusBus Integrated Ticketing
	Train and bus companies have been working together (under the umbrella of an organisation called Journey Solutions) to deliver a national integrated rail/bus ticket, known as the Plusbus Scheme. The principal aim of the research will be to measure awareness of PlusBus; examine customer satisfaction with the product; critically review each step of the PlusBus journey; test effectiveness of promotional components; confirm target market; and measure impact on travel patterns. The work will contribute to the Department for Transport understanding about multi-modal ticketing—one of the Transport Direct strategic objectives.

Transport Direct

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what work has been undertaken on the Transport Direct business plan.

David Jamieson: Sufficient background work on the travel information and retailing internet service Business Plan has been undertaken to enable preliminary discussions to be held with stakeholders, including transport providers, existing information providers and representative groups. These discussions are now underway.

Traveline

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps have been taken with regard to contracting market research relating to the future direction of the Traveline service.

David Jamieson: The Department for Transport is providing a supporting role to traveline and has agreed to fund and manage two research projects.
	The first research project is underway and is assessing issues that traveline may need to address to ensure effective future delivery to the customer. This includes an assessment of extending the future minimum opening hours for traveline; identifying the requirements for existing traveline customers; and establishing the extent of information that needs to be given by traveline if we to encourage greater use of public transport, among public transport users and non-public transport users. Recommendations on changes to the future traveline service following research will be examined by traveline.
	The second project is planning to look at the standard of trunk journey solutions provided by traveline and the associated costs. The Department for Transport wishes to assess the extent to which the national requirements placed on traveline for the provision of trunk service information (i.e. data about the national rail and coach network) have been achieved. The requirements state that the traveline system must provide answers that are consistent with the information provided by the respective national trunk service information providers (i.e. Go By Coach, Scottish Citylink and National Rail Enquiry Service). The traveline parties will address recommendations following research.

Traveline

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what changes and improvements have been made to the Traveline website during 2002; what additional changes are planned; and by what date changes are planned to be implemented.

David Jamieson: Traveline regional journey planners for East Anglia, London and parts of the North West have been added to the traveline website during 2002.
	It is expected that the traveline journey planners for the South East, East Midlands, South West, Scotland and Wales will be added to the traveline website by December 2002.
	A journey planner for the West Midlands and a journey planner covering the remaining parts of the North West will be added in 2003.
	A merger of the traveline website and a website that offers a comprehensive index to public transport information sites has been started during 2002 and will be completed in early 2003. The combined site will maintain the existing traveline web address and branding.

Road Hauliers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which suppliers provide the TAN21 self service online service for road hauliers to update operators' licences.

David Jamieson: The suppliers are CMG Admiral plc.

European Directive 2001/16/EC

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to introduce regulations to give effect to European Directive 2001/16/EC.

David Jamieson: We expect to make Regulations to implement the Directive next year.

Railway Industry

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations have been made by (a) his Department and (b) the Strategic Rail Authority on the impact of the Enterprise Bill upon the railway industry.

David Jamieson: .

Bus Real-Time

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the study being conducted into the business case for bus real-time information; when he expects to publish the findings of this research; what steps are being taken to act upon these findings; and when he expects to produce best practice advice.

David Jamieson: The work on providing a business case for bus real-time is continuing, the business case will quantify the benefit of such systems. Recommendations for the business case are due for completion within the next 2 months. We are still at an early stage of reviewing the business case and we will consider what actions are warranted.

Fuel Duty

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with (a) the bus industry, (b) local authorities, (c) Transport for London, (d) passenger transport executives and (e) the Treasury on changes to the fuel duty rebate.

David Jamieson: We are at present conducting a review of bus subsidies, including the future of fuel duty rebate (now known as Bus Service Operators grant). A consultation paper was issued on 6 August 2002 and we will take account of the responses of all interested parties. The review will report to Transport and Treasury Ministers in February 2003.

School Transport

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what research has been conducted for and by his Department on the effect of legislation covering school transport under the Education Act 1996 on (a) reducing congestion and (b) promoting social inclusion; and if he will place copies in the Library;
	(2)  what research has been conducted by his Department on the role of free home to school transport, on (a) reducing congestion and (b) promoting social inclusion.

David Jamieson: In March 2001 DTLR commissioned W S Atkins to assess what the effects would be of increasing the current provision of home-to-school transport. The study, which reported at the end of 2001, identified considerable interest in using home-to-school transport amongst households that were currently not entitled to free home to school transport. It concluded that relaxing the eligibility criteria would have a noticeable impact on car use. Copies of the report—Assessment of parental attitudes to and the potential take-up of additional home to school transport—have been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	The Social Exclusion Unit is currently carrying out a study into transport and social exclusion. The full report is expected later this year and is expected to include a chapter on access to learning.

Seat Restraints

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the rules governing the wearing of seat restraints for children under four years old; and what figures he has collated for incidents involving such children in the last five years.

David Jamieson: The law on the wearing of child restraints is summarised as follows:
	
		
			  Front Seat Rear Seat 
		
		
			 Child under 3 years Appropriate child restraint must be worn Appropriate child restraint must be worn, if available 
			 Child aged 3 to 11 (and under 150 cms in height) Appropriate child restraint must be used if available. If not, an adult seat belt must be worn. Appropriate child restraint must be used if available. If not, an adult seat belt must be worn if available. 
		
	
	If there is no seat belt available, then children may not travel in the front. Passengers in the rear seats of passenger carrying vehicles over 2.54 tonnes unladen weight are not required to use seat belts or child restraints. Casualty figures for children 0–3 years are set out below. Information on the use of seat belts is not recorded in official casualty statistics, and therefore it is not possible to say whether these casualties were using child restraints or seat belts or not. The figures include casualties in buses or coaches where the passenger was injured whilst getting on or off—these are not disaggregated from the casualty figures.

Seat Restraints

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out the United Kingdom's position in the draft directive amending Directive 91/671 on seat belts; and if he will make a statement in the likely timetable for adoption and implementation into UK domestic law.

David Jamieson: The Government has supported the general thrust of the Commission's proposals to update EU Directive 671/91 on seat belt wearing. The Directive has yet to receive the approval of the European Parliament but once it comes into force, probably early in 2003, the Government will consult on the necessary legislation to bring the provisions into domestic law. A timetable has not yet been established for that.
	
		1997 to 2001. Child, 0–3 years, Passenger Casualties in Road Vehicles (cars, goods vehicles, buses and coaches)
		
			  1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 
		
		
			 Killed 14 17 18 10 15 
			 Seriously Injured 201 222 165 149 143 
			 Slightly injured 2,840 2,673 2,571 2,338 2,440 
			  
			 Total 3,055 2,912 2,754 2,497 2,598 
		
	
	Source:
	Road Accidents Great Britain, published by the Department for Transport

First Railway Package

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions have taken place with the railway industry on progress with the implementation of the First Railway Package of the European Commission; and if he will place copies in the Library.

David Jamieson: There have been a number of meetings sought by individual industry participants in connection with these directives which have included progress with implementation.

Performance Targets

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment has been made by and and for his Department of the performance of (a) the Commission for Integrated Transport and (b) Rail Passengers' Committees including performance targets; what reports have been published on their performance; and if he will place copies of such reports not readily available in the Library.

David Jamieson: (a) There is a requirement for all Non Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) to be reviewed quinquennially. The Commission for Integrated Transport's first quinquennial review will take place in 2004. There is no requirement to carry out any additional performance reviews of the Commission, as they are only an Advisory NDPB. The Commission does however publish annual reports that give details of their performance; copies of their first 3 annual reports have been placed in the House Libraries.
	(b) The work of Rail Passengers Committees are co-ordinated by the Rail Passengers Council. The Council and Committees are the statutory watchdog protecting and promoting the interests of rail passengers. Their statutory duties are set out in sections 76 and 77 of the Railways Act 1993, as amended by the Transport Act 2000. Sponsorship and external assessment of the work of the Council and Committees are matters for the Strategic Rail Authority.
	The Council is finalising a new mission statement and long-term goals for it and the Committees and will be consulting on them later in the year.
	The Council and Committees mission statements and aims are set out in their annual reports. Copies of the annual reports for the Council and the Committees for Scotland and Wales are available in the House Libraries, as required by legislation. I will arrange for the annual reports of the remaining committees to henceforth also be made available through the House Libraries.

Ten-year Plan

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when each of the targets for Transport Direct outlined in the 10-year plan will be met.

David Jamieson: The targets set out in the 10 year plan are that by 2003 Transport Direct will include:
	real-time (that is, actual rather than recorded or timetabled) train operating information
	real-time information on many local bus services
	multi-modal travel information on the Internet, covering road journeys as well as all public transport modes at a single point of contact
	booking of long-distance multi-modal journeys on the Internet
	development of Internet-based maps, which allow travellers to examine public transport options both for visiting a specific venue and for general travel around an area they are considering visiting.
	These targets are on course to be achieved during 2003.

Tram Schemes

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the tram schemes (a) under construction, (b) being developed and (c) being considered for funding from his Department.

David Jamieson: The information requested is listed below:
	(a) Systems Under Construction
	Nottingham Express Transit-Nottingham-Hucknall, 14km. Due to open in November 2003.
	(b) Systems Being Developed
	Manchester Metrolink Phase III: three new lines to Oldham/Rochdale, Ashton-under-Lyne, and Manchester Airport. Bids are under consideration.
	Leeds Supertram—a 3 line 28km network linking the city centre to Headingley and Lawnswood; Seacroft and Whinmoor, and Tingley and Stourton Park and Ride. Detailed bids from the two short-listed consortia are due in October 2002.
	South Hampshire Rapid Transit, linking Portsmouth, Gosport and Fareham. Detailed bids from three qualifying consortia to design, build, maintain, and operate the scheme are expected at the end of 2002.
	Bristol and South Gloucestershire, linking Bristol and Almondsbury. Economic appraisal provisionally approved subject to confirmation of details of proposals. The promoters are now reviewing these.
	(c) Systems Being Considered for Funding—Less Advanced Proposals
	There are proposals for a new tram system in Merseyside (economic appraisal under consideration), an upgrade of the Blackpool Tramway (economic appraisal under consideration) and extensions to it. There are also longer-term plans for further extensions to the Midland Metro, Tyne and Wear Metro, Manchester Metrolink, South Yorkshire Supertram and Nottingham Express Transit and proposals in outline for new tram systems in Hull and Medway.

Lighthouse Depots

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions his Department has had with the Lighthouse Board over the possible closure of the Stromness Lighthouse Depot; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The Department discussed strategies for support depots with the lighthouse authorities in July. The future of the Stromness depot was among the issues covered at my Department's annual bilateral meeting with the Northern Lighthouse Board on 18 October. The NLB is consulting widely on the possible closure of the depot, and the Commissioners are expected to consider their conclusions in December.

Lighthouse Depots

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if the Department will publish the advice it gave the lighthouse authorities regarding maintenance of their depots.

David Jamieson: The Department has discussed the overall requirements for aids to navigation support facilities with the lighthouse authorities. The Department has not given the authorities any specific advice on depot maintenance.

Lighthouse Depots

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what date (a) his Department and (b) the Marine Coastguard Agency were first contacted over the proposed closure of the Stromness Lighthouse Depot.

David Jamieson: The Northern Lighthouse Board informed my Department in July of its intention to review the future of the Stromness depot. I understand from the Board that the Maritime and Coastguard Agency was included in its Consultation Exercise that began on 30 August.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Correspondence

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will reply to the letter of 27 November 2001 from the hon. Member for Truro and St. Austell, regarding Cornwall's integrated waste system; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: A reply was sent on 15 July following a meeting the hon. Member had with my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Environment.

Correspondence

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will reply to the letters from the hon. Member for the Isle of Wight dated 22 May on the effect of nuclear processing.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 23 July 2002
	I am sorry, but we have no record of these letters in the Department.

Correspondence

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Totnes of 17 June about access to inland waters for water-based sports.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 25 July 2002
	A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 14 July 2002.

Correspondence

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will reply to the letter of 13 May, from the hon. Member for the Vale of York, on behalf of a constituent, Joan Cambage, regarding SI843.

Elliot Morley: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 2 July 2002.

Correspondence

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will reply to the letter of 12 March, from the hon. Member for the Vale of York, of a constituent County Councillor John Savage, regarding BSE in sheep.

Elliot Morley: The hon. Member's letter was transferred to the Food Standards Agency who take the lead on the issue raised. I understand that a Department of Health Minister will be replying shortly.

Consultants

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much expenditure her Department has incurred in each year since 1997 on employing external consultants to deal with the press or public relations of her Department.

Elliot Morley: As DEFRA was set up in June 2001, retrospective information on expenditure before this date does not exist for the Department.
	I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow) on 23 July 2002, Official Report, column 916W.

Foot and Mouth

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which livestock markets are identified as receiving animals infected with foot and mouth disease in 2001; how many other farms became infected as a result of the movement of (a) infected animals, (b) contaminated people and (c) contaminated vehicles from each of these markets; what the results were of the laboratory tests conducted on animals from such farms for each of the three possible sources of infection listed; and on how many such farms no laboratory tests were conducted.

Elliot Morley: This information is not available in the form requested. The following table shows the livestock markets which are believed to have received FMD infected animals in February 2001, and the answer to (a)—the number of farms directly infected by the movement of infected animals and the results of laboratory tests on animals from these farms. These farms seeded further spread in a number of locations.
	Information on (b) and (c) has not been collated and is not available, but, for example, approximately 28 Infected Premises were directly connected with Longtown Market.
	
		
			 Market Movement of infected animals to: 
			  Market Abattoir Farm (includes dealers) Total Infected Premises Sampled—positive result returned Sampled—negative result returned 
		
		
			 Hexham 1 0 2 3 2 Farms 
			 Longtown 0 2 9 11 7 Farms 2 Farms 
			 Hereford*** 0 0 0 0 
			 Ross 0 0 1 1  1 Farm 
			 Northampton 0 0 2 2 2 Farms 
			 Welshpool 0 1 2 3 2 Farms 
		
	
	Notes:
	*** Believed to have received infected animals
	This information is based on data available in October 2001. Figures may change if further collation of field data is undertaken. It is unlikely that the markets identified as infected will change.

Dairy Industry

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government are taking to encourage the stability of dairy farms and businesses.

Elliot Morley: Lord Whitty recently met senior representatives of the dairy industry—as part of DEFRA Ministers' wider follow-up to Don Curry's recent report—to discuss a range of supply chain issues. The Government will continue to promote a sustainable dairy sector through further engagement with the industry on the challenges it faces.
	During forthcoming discussions on CAP reform, we will also be seeking an early and definite end date for milk quotas. This will enable businesses to plan ahead with certainty.

Illegally Logged Hardwood

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps she has taken to prevent the importation of illegally logged hardwood timber.

Elliot Morley: Customs can seize illegally logged timber only if the species concerned is covered by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). New EU-wide legislation is needed to empower customs authorities to prevent entry of illegally logged non-CITES timber. The UK is working within the EU to identify what legislation is needed and how it can be introduced. The UK Government has also committed its own central departments and their agencies to procure timber from legal and sustainable sources.
	In the meantime we are lobbying hard to ensure that the proposal to increase the protection afforded to big-leaf mahogany by uplisting it to Appendix II of CITES is approved at the Conference of CITES Parties in Santiago, Chile, in November. We will also work hard in the margins of the meeting to encourage more tropical timber producing countries to list more of their trees on Appendix III of CITES, which would bring these species under monitoring control.

Bovine TB

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what reasons underlie the change in bovine TB compensation expenditure in Great Britain from 2000–01.

Elliot Morley: Expenditure on TB compensation in GB fell from #7,307,797 in 2000 to #7,074,125 in 2001. The reduction was due to the diversion of resources during the Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak away from the testing of cattle for TB. Therefore the number of animals identified as TB reactors and slaughtered as a consequence, fell from 6,954 in 2000 to 5,903 in 2001.

Bovine TB

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what reasons underlie the change in expenditure on the bovine TB programme, excluding compensation, in Wales from 1999–2000 to 2000–01.

Elliot Morley: Pursuant to the answer given to the hon. Member on 10 July, Official Report, column 948W, expenditure on the State Veterinary Service Bovine TB programme in Wales fell from #1,472,469 in 1999–2000 to #1,240,032 in 2000–01.
	SVS expenditure figures include the cost of dealing with reactor herds when new incidents of Bovine TB are identified. The reduction of expenditure between 1999–2000 and 2000–01 can be explained by a lower number of TB incidents in Wales in 2000.

Parliamentary Answers

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether it is her policy to ensure that all documents referred to in parliamentary answers are available via her Department's website; and for how long she retains on her Department's website documents referred to in parliamentary answers.

Elliot Morley: The Department aims to be as helpful as possible in responding to hon. Members' Questions. Where it is helpful to refer hon. Members to other documents as part of the substantive reply, this may be done by making hard copies of documents available in the Libraries of the House, or by reference to material available on the Department's website.
	Minimum requirements for the type of documents which should be published on Government websites are set out in guidance issued by the Office of the E-envoy, ''Guidelines for UK Government Websites'' (Illustrated Handbook for web management teams section 2.2 ''What content should be on your website?'' and section 2.3 ''Cross-government requirements''). In addition to setting out guidelines on documents for inclusion, the guidance also explicitly requires Departments to ensure that the content of the site as a whole is up to date and current, and where it is necessary to update the content of individual documents, to show the latest date of amendment clearly on the document concerned. Section 1.2.7 deals with the issue of Records management and the OeE currently has a consultation paper out on Archiving websites. The purpose of this draft annex to the Illustrated handbook is to provide government website managers with a framework towards developing within their website management policy suitable procedures and systems to assist in the management, appraisal and preservation of electronic records. A copy of this draft is available online at http://www.e-envoy.gov.uk/webguidelines.htm. A copy of the Guidelines for UK Government websites is available at http://www.e-envoy.gov.uk/webguidelines.htm.
	The Department's website carries all the categories of document identified by the Guidelines for UK Government websites, and displays the latest date of amendment clearly on each document. All documents are maintained on the website unless they become out of date or are superseded. We are taking account of the draft annex to the Illustrated handbook in developing our procedures and systems for maintenance of website material.

Composting

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what plans she has to offer support to establish new facilities for the composting of cooked food waste;
	(2)  when the guidance on the composting of food waste will be announced.

Elliot Morley: We are currently drawing up legislation to allow the treatment of catering waste in composting plants. We intend to consult on the draft legislation in the autumn.
	There are no plans to offer financial support to establish new facilities for the composting of cooked food waste. However, the 2000 spending review provided substantial additional resources to help deliver the statutory performance standards on recycling and composting.
	Guidance on the composting of food waste will be issued following the public consultation exercise.

Egg Laying Cages

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will undertake not to make a decision on the future of enriched egg laying cages until after the results of her Department's funded research have been published.

Elliot Morley: The public consultation exercise, which has now started, on the future of enriched cages, will form part of our evidence gathering process about the welfare benefits of these cages. We will also consider all available scientific evidence. The industry needs to make long term investment decisions.

Egg Laying Cages

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will publish the scientific research which informed her decision to hold a full public consultation into the future of the enriched egg laying cage.

Elliot Morley: The public consultation exercise has been started at the earliest opportunity to allow the industry to make long term investment decisions.
	Scientific research into enriched cages is on-going.

EU Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2002, Official Report, column 70W, when members of the Scottish Executive have attended meetings of the EU management committees of the common organisations of agricultural markets for cereals; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: Further to my answer of 1 July 2002, I can confirm that, since the creation of DEFRA, members of the Scottish Executive have attended meetings of the EU Management Committee of the common organisation of the market for cereals on ten occasions.

EU Management Committee

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2002, Official Report, column 368W, when members of the Scottish Executive have attended meetings of the EU Management Committee of the common organisations of agricultural markets for natural fibres; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: Officials from the Scottish Executive have not attended the meetings of the Management Committee for Natural Fibres held over the last 12 months. The UK has been represented by officials from the Department. The devolved administrations are fully consulted and can attend as necessary.

Poultry Units

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the role small free range poultry units can play in reviving the agricultural sector; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 24 July 2002
	DEFRA recognises the importance of free range egg systems in terms of consumer choice, but we have made no specific assessment of the role of small free range poultry units in reviving the agriculture sector as a whole. Individual producers will need to make decisions based on their own individual circumstances.

Sustainable Development

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what further action the Government will undertake to eliminate subsidies to the fishing industry to reduce capacity as agreed at the World Summit on Sustainable Development and by which year this pledge will need to be met to help achieve the 2015 millennium development goals.

Elliot Morley: The UK does not provide subsidies to the fishing industry for the construction of vessels or for their modernisation in ways which could increase fishing capacity. We support Commission proposals to end such subsidies as part of CFP reform.

Badgers

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had about the badger population in England.

Elliot Morley: The Department regularly receives representations on a wide range of issues including badgers.
	English Nature advises there are likely to be in the region of 300,000 to 400,000 badgers in Great Britain.

Hedgehogs

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions she has had about the hedgehog population in England.

Elliot Morley: The Department regularly receives representations on a wide range of species issues including hedgehogs.

Hedgehogs

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what evidence she has that the hedgehog population has declined disproportionately in certain regions of England.

Elliot Morley: The Government's scientific advisers, English Nature, consider that the hedgehog is under no conservation threat. The UK's total pre-breeding population stands at about 1,555,000; 1,100,000 in England, 310,000 in Scotland and 145,000 in Wales. English Nature is aware of a study into numbers of hedgehogs killed on roads by cars but advises that, as the study is not yet completed, it is too early to draw conclusions at this stage.
	The Department has let a research contract to design and pilot a multi-species terrestrial mammal monitoring project. This is due to conclude in November 2003.

Hedgehogs

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what evidence she has collated on a correlation between the growth of the badger population and a fall in hedgehog population in certain regions.

Elliot Morley: At present there is no comprehensive, standardised national monitoring of British mammals that embraces the full range of important species. Whilst a range of organisations undertake monitoring, not all mammals are included, surveys are often sporadic and the results distributed to only a limited extent.
	DEFRA therefore let a GB wide research contract entitled ''Design and pilot a multi-species terrestrial mammal monitoring project'' in June 2001, to the British Trust for Ornithology and the Mammal Society. The overall aim will be to design and pilot, using a volunteer network, a winter monitoring project involving both visual recording of mammals and the recording of their signs. This is intended to form a building block for an integrated mammal-monitoring system.
	The work will include an analysis of the results, including aspects such as accuracy, repeatability and the utility of the results, for monitoring mammal abundance and distribution and for the potential to assess long-term trends. The pilot scheme concludes in November 2003.
	As yet no population comparisons have been undertaken of species such as hedgehog and badger.

Abandoned Cars

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many abandoned cars each local authority in England and Wales stated they had removed in their submissions to the Municipal Waste Survey 2000–01.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 21 October 2002
	Figures from the 2000–01 Municipal Waste Management Survey show that 288 local authorities in England and Wales, out of a total of 376, responded to the number of abandoned vehicles question in the Municipal Waste Management Survey 2000–01 in England and Wales. The authorities and the numbers of abandoned vehicles removed and destroyed reported are listed below:
	
		
			 Local Authority Number of Abandoned vehicles 
		
		
			 Adur 793 
			 Alnwick 54 
			 Amber Valley 147 
			 Arun 590 
			 Ashford 612 
			 Aylesbury Vale 507 
			 Babergh 391 
			 Barking and Dagenham 2,761 
			 Barnet 3,287 
			 Barnsley 248 
			 Basildon 1,529 
			 Basingstoke and Deane 780 
			 Bassetlaw 92 
			 Bath and NE Somerset 796 
			 Bedford 876 
			 Bexley 1,356 
			 Birmingham 5,466 
			 Blaby 113 
			 Blaenau Gwent 960 
			 Blyth Valley 110 
			 Bolsover 249 
			 Boston 65 
			 Bournemouth 878 
			 Bracknell Forest 707 
			 Bradford 2,600 
			 Braintree 554 
			 Breckland 238 
			 Brent 3,471 
			 Brentwood 400 
			 Bridgnorth 37 
			 Brighton and Hove 4,000 
			 Bromley 3,895 
			 Bromsgrove 119 
			 Broxbourne 1,393 
			 Broxtowe 171 
			 Caerphilly 1,800 
			 Calderdale 441 
			 Cambridge 261 
			 Camden 1,629 
			 Cannock Chase 30 
			 Canterbury 809 
			 Caradon 108 
			 Carmarthenshire 120 
			 Carrick 174 
			 Castle Point 450 
			 Ceredigion 150 
			 Charnwood 153 
			 Chelmsford 800 
			 Chesterfield 45 
			 Chester-le-Street 18 
			 Chichester 600 
			 Chiltern 195 
			 Christchurch 73 
			 City of Bristol 2,590 
			 City of Kingston-upon-Hull 717 
			 City of London 0 
			 Colchester 319 
			 Conwy 250 
			 Corby 504 
			 Cotswold 67 
			 County of Herefordshire 368 
			 Craven 0 
			 Crawley 1,145 
			 Croydon 2,878 
			 Dacorum 1,150 
			 Darlington 98 
			 Dartford 483 
			 Daventry 388 
			 Derby 579 
			 Derbyshire Dales 40 
			 Derwentside 15 
			 Doncaster 410 
			 Dover 469 
			 Dudley 234 
			 Durham City 39 
			 Ealing 3,754 
			 Easington 14 
			 East Cambridgeshire 330 
			 East Devon 288 
			 East Dorset 279 
			 East Hampshire 209 
			 East Hertfordshire 355 
			 East Lindsey 226 
			 East Northamptonshire 191 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 227 
			 East Staffordshire 164 
			 Eastbourne 631 
			 Eastleigh 200 
			 Enfield 4,711 
			 Epping Forest 1,838 
			 Epsom and Ewell 360 
			 Erewash 270 
			 Fenland 176 
			 Flintshire 100 
			 Forest Heath 145 
			 Forest of Dean 186 
			 Gateshead 149 
			 Gloucester 700 
			 Gosport 496 
			 Gravesham 884 
			 Great Yarmouth 255 
			 Greenwich 3,120 
			 Guildford 724 
			 Gwynedd 619 
			 Hackney 2,700 
			 Hambleton 96 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 1,430 
			 Harborough 550 
			 Haringey 6,500 
			 Harlow 1,240 
			 Harrogate 143 
			 Harrow 1,914 
			 Hart 256 
			 Hartlepool 55 
			 Hastings 1,100 
			 Havant 897 
			 Havering 1,250 
			 Hertsmere 534 
			 High Peak 87 
			 Hillingdon 2,286 
			 Hinckley and Bosworth 353 
			 Horsham 173 
			 Hounslow 2,247 
			 Ipswich 785 
			 Isles of Scilly 0 
			 Islington 2,619 
			 Kennet 54 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 195 
			 Kerrier 232 
			 Kettering 350 
			 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 271 
			 Kingston upon Thames 739 
			 Kirklees 287 
			 Lambeth 3,308 
			 Leeds 877 
			 Leicester 1,416 
			 Lewes 470 
			 Lewisham 5,000 
			 Lichfield 271 
			 Lincoln 136 
			 Luton 2,403 
			 Maidstone 1,015 
			 Mansfield 650 
			 Medway 1,157 
			 Melton 30 
			 Mendip 250 
			 Merthyr Tydfil 482 
			 Merton 1,683 
			 Mid Bedfordshire 584 
			 Mid Devon 376 
			 Mid Suffolk 145 
			 Mid Sussex 347 
			 Mole Valley 621 
			 Monmouthshire 244 
			 New Forest 474 
			 Newark and Sherwood 289 
			 Newcastle-under-Lyme 150 
			 Newham 6,704 
			 Newport 789 
			 North Cornwall 266 
			 North Devon 33 
			 North Dorset 60 
			 North East Derbyshire 70 
			 North East Lincolnshire 267 
			 North Hertfordshire 332 
			 North Kesteven 101 
			 North Lincolnshire 135 
			 North Norfolk 66 
			 North Somerset 570 
			 North Tyneside 451 
			 North Warwickshire 133 
			 North West Leicestershire 267 
			 Northampton 1,682 
			 Norwich 351 
			 Nottingham 586 
			 Nuneaton and Bedworth 183 
			 Oadby and Wigston 58 
			 Oswestry 129 
			 Oxford 1,455 
			 Pembrokeshire 487 
			 Plymouth 1,779 
			 Poole 649 
			 Portsmouth 826 
			 Powys 606 
			 Purbeck 89 
			 Reading 1,090 
			 Redbridge 1,562 
			 Reigate and Banstead 718 
			 Restormel 266 
			 Richmond upon Thames 1,201 
			 Richmondshire 9 
			 Rother 336 
			 Rotherham 150 
			 Runnymede 609 
			 Rushcliffe 181 
			 Rushmoor 375 
			 Rutland 100 
			 Ryedale 45 
			 Salisbury 354 
			 Sandwell 6,639 
			 Scarborough 543 
			 Sedgefield 80 
			 Sedgemoor 377 
			 Selby 120 
			 Sevenoaks 498 
			 Sheffield 100 
			 Shepway 733 
			 Shrewsbury and Atcham 86 
			 Slough 669 
			 Solihull 275 
			 South Bedfordshire 500 
			 South Cambridgeshire 100 
			 South Derbyshire 154 
			 South Gloucestershire 987 
			 South Kesteven 148 
			 South Norfolk 116 
			 South Northamptonshire 140 
			 South Oxfordshire 418 
			 South Shropshire 7 
			 South Somerset 356 
			 South Staffordshire 48 
			 South Tyneside 415 
			 Southampton 1,132 
			 Southend-on-Sea 1,132 
			 Southwark 1,934 
			 Spelthorne 596 
			 St. Albans 486 
			 St. Edmundsbury 760 
			 Stafford 37 
			 Staffordshire Moorlands 26 
			 Stevenage 598 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 39 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 250 
			 Stratford-on-Avon 43 
			 Stroud 51 
			 Suffolk Coastal 165 
			 Sunderland 197 
			 Surrey Heath 226 
			 Sutton 1,651 
			 Swale 738 
			 Swindon 440 
			 Tamworth 60 
			 Tandridge 500 
			 Taunton Deane 248 
			 Teesdale 17 
			 Teignbridge 741 
			 Telford and Wrekin 1,332 
			 Tendring 835 
			 Test Valley 406 
			 Tewkesbury 115 
			 Thanet 950 
			 The Vale of Glamorgan 264 
			 Three Rivers 351 
			 Tonbridge and Malling 557 
			 Torbay 354 
			 Torfaen 668 
			 Torridge 111 
			 Tunbridge Wells 688 
			 Tynedale 29 
			 Uttlesford 250 
			 Vale of White Horse 464 
			 Walsall 976 
			 Waltham Forest 2,716 
			 Wandsworth 2,571 
			 Warwick 137 
			 Watford 822 
			 Waveney 115 
			 Waverley 343 
			 Wealden 483 
			 Wear Valley 40 
			 Wellingborough 290 
			 Welwyn Hatfield 1,000 
			 West Berkshire 697 
			 West Dorset 232 
			 West Oxfordshire 290 
			 West Somerset 64 
			 West Wiltshire 113 
			 Westminster 496 
			 Weymouth and Portland 85 
			 Winchester 263 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 488 
			 Woking 352 
			 Wolverhampton 381 
			 Worcester 316 
			 Worthing 310 
			 Wrexham 231 
			 Wychavon 90 
			 Wycombe 1,155 
		
	
	Note:
	A total of 238 thousand abandoned vehicles was estimated for England and Wales in 2000–01, which includes an estimation for the non-responding authorities.

Planning Applications

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many areas of outstanding natural beauty or SSSIs have been the subject of planning applications in each of the past 10 years.

Alun Michael: This level of information is not collected and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Agricultural Wages Board

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what economic assessment has been made of the cost of the recent Agricultural Wages Board settlement on (a) agriculture, (b) horticulture, (c) the soft fruit sector and (d) the top fruit sector.

Alun Michael: Following the Agricultural Wages Board annual pay negotiations on 3/4 July, an assessment of the impact of the proposed changes to be included in the 2002 Wages Order was issued by the Board's Secretariat on 5 August 2002. Copies were sent to all the people who requested further information on the Board's proposals. This showed the increased cost to the agriculture industry in England and Wales over the period 1 October 2002 to 30 June 2003, resulting from the proposed changes, to be between #57 and #69 million. These costings were derived from the Ready Reckoner prepared annually by Defra for the Board to use during the pay negotiations. Cost estimates for individual sectors of the industry were not prepared.
	Cost assessments were also prepared by the National Farmers Union and the Transport and General Workers Union. Defra statisticians also reviewed the results of the September 2001 Earnings and Hours Survey and submitted a paper to the Board showing how this would affect the Board's assessment of the impact of the 2002 proposals. In addition Defra economists prepared a paper for the Board, providing an update on the economic performance of each of the key sectors in the agriculture and horticulture industry. The Board's Secretariat has confirmed that all these papers were considered by a meeting of the Board's Working Party which took place on 27 August (immediately prior to the Board's Confirmation meeting on 29 August). This meeting was intended to ensure that both sides of the Board and the Independent members had a clear understanding of how the proposals would impact on both the employers' costs and workers' pay.

Countryside and Rights of Way Act

Andrew Bennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when section 63 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 will be implemented; what the legal and financial implications of this will be for local authorities; what incentive it will provide for them to ensure that their rights of way networks are kept fully open; and if she will make a statement.

Alun Michael: Following our recent consultation on implementation of section 63 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, we are now drafting regulations in the light of the 126 responses we received, with a view to commencing the provisions in early 2003.
	Local highway authorities are already under a duty to protect the rights of the public to use rights of way. Under the new burdens procedure, highway authorities collectively are being funded for the additional requirements imposed by section 63. The procedures will provide a formal means for any person to draw to the authority's attention paths which are being obstructed and to take court action where they fail to act. The provisions will encourage authorities to be more proactive in their attempts to keep rights of way free from obstructions, leading to improved access and use of rights of way.

National Access Database

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer of 16 July 2002, Official Report, column 138W, on the National Access Database, when the results of the feasibility study into the National Access Database being conducted by the Countryside Agency will be published.

Alun Michael: The National Access Database feasibility study report has been received by the Agency. A research note outlining the findings of the feasibility study is now expected to be published in November 2002.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Sport Action Zones

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list by region the (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful bids for sport action zones.

Richard Caborn: (a) The successful bids for sport action zones:
	East region—Luton;
	Yorkshire region—Bradford, South Yorkshire;
	West Midlands region—Birmingham;
	South West region—Cornwall and Isles of Silly;
	London region—North Lambeth/North Southwark;
	East midlands region—North Nottinghamshire/North Derby, Braunstone;
	North East region—Wear Valley;
	North West region—Liverpool, East Manchester, West Cumbria and Barrow.
	(b) The unsuccessful bids for sport action zones:
	South West region—Weston;
	South East region—North Kent, Milton Keynes, Reading, Southampton and Coastal Sport Action Zone (Thanet);
	London region—North Lewisham, Tower Hamlets, Islington, North and East London;
	Camden neighbourhood, SCORE (Leyton Orient Community Sports Programme);
	North East region—Coalfields Sport and Leisure (Sunderland), Gateshead;
	North West region—Wythenshawe, Blackburn with Darwen, Oldham, St. Helens, Pendle.

Sport England

John Greenway: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Chief Executive of Sport England about his decision to resign.

Richard Caborn: My Department was in close contact with David Moffett prior to the announcement of his resignation, and will continue to work closely with him and his successor at Sport England.

National Lottery

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much has been spent on lottery tickets, broken down by constituency, since 1999.

Richard Caborn: Information about National Lottery ticket sales is not collected by constituency. But the National Lottery Commission is able to provide information about sales broken down by postcode area, and I shall write to my hon. Friend with it as soon as possible

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Members' Access

David Taylor: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission, what improvements are planned for Members' access to Information and Communications Technology on the Parliamentary Estate.

Archy Kirkwood: The Commission has adopted as a strategic objective the development and maintenance of an information infrastructure that is unified, consistent, seamless and accessible. There are a number of projects under way which will allow Members to derive greater benefits from Information and Communications Technology in their work.
	The House Administration as a whole is considering the Information Committee's recent report, Digital Technology: Working for Parliament and the public, which looks at ways of using Information and Communications Technology to bring the House and the public closer together, something which I know is important to the hon. Gentleman.

Members' Guests

Kevin Brennan: To ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission, if the Commission will take steps to ensure that hon. Members may invite musicians from their constituency to play music in the House.

Archy Kirkwood: Permission for musical performances is granted on a case-by-case basis by the Speaker. I understand that the Speaker has agreed to occasional performances provided that meetings and events in adjoining areas are not disturbed. Hon. Members who wish to have music performed at a private function in a refreshment room should direct their request to the Catering Committee, which advises the Speaker.

PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL

Speakers Lists

Ian Lucas: To ask the President of the Council, if he will bring forward proposals to publish lists of speakers in debates.

Ben Bradshaw: This proposal was discussed in the recent report from the Modernisation Committee, and the Committee has undertaken to keep the matter under review with the Speaker and his deputies.

PRIVY COUNCIL

Members' Allowances

Simon Hughes: To ask the President of the Council, what plans the Commission has to give hon. Members additional allowances for members' staff in order to cope with exceptionally heavy workloads.

Ben Bradshaw: This is not a matter for the Commission. The Speaker's Advisory Panel has power to consider this and make recommendations if they consider it appropriate. However, allowances were increased last July by at least 50 per cent. in order to meet the needs of our constituents and it may be best to wait until the new system has bedded in before considering whether further increases are merited.

House of Lords Reform

John Lyons: To ask the President of the Council, if he will make a statement on House of Lords reform.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government's objective remains to complete the reform process on which it embarked in 1997. Whether progress is possible and how fast is now a matter for Parliament itself to influence in the light of the forthcoming report of the Joint Committee of both Houses. The Government has said it will not seek to influence the Joint Committee's deliberations. We will decide how best to proceed in the light of the Joint Committee's views and the opinions of both Houses as expressed in free votes on the options defined by the Joint Committee.

EU Institution Visits

Graham Allen: To ask the President of the Council, what he is doing to encourage Members to take up the facility to visit EU institutions.

Ben Bradshaw: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my right hon. Friend, the Leader of the House yesterday.

EU Institution Visits

Graham Allen: To ask the President of the Council, what percentage of hon. Members have used the facility of a visit to an EU institution in each of the years for which figures are available; and what steps he has taken to encourage greater take up of this facility.

Robin Cook: The number of hon. Members who have visited EU institutions under this scheme is as follows:
	
		
			 Year No of Members Percentage (%) 
			 1998–9 65 9.9 
			 1999–00 61 9.3 
			 2000–1 72 10.9 
			 2001–2 80 12.1 
			 2002–3 (first six months) 76 11.5 
		
	
	The ''quick guide'' to members' allowances contains details of the entitlement. This was sent out to all Members in May, and further copies are available from the Department of Finance and Administration.
	The House itself approved an amendment of the scheme on 9 May, to allow up to three visits each year to national parliaments of EU member states and those of candidate countries, in addition to EU institutions in Brussels, Strasbourg and Luxembourg.
	I understand that Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) officials are ready to assist Members using the allowance, and I am pleased my hon. Friend has given me the opportunity to remind Members of its existence.

Parliamentary Questions

James Purnell: To ask the President of the Council, when he plans to publish the Government's response to the Procedure Committee Report on Parliamentary Questions (HC622).

Robin Cook: I have today laid before the House a copy of the Government's response to the Procedure Committee Report on Parliamentary Questions (Cm 5628). Copies of the response are available in the Vote Office, Libraries of the House and on my department's website www.privycouncil.gov.uk
	The House will debate the report of the Committee and the Government's response on 29 October.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Rwanda

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the return of displaced persons to Rwanda.

Clare Short: By mid 1994, out of Rwanda's population of roughly 8 million at the beginning of the 1990's, some 2 million had become internally displaced and a further 2 million had fled as refugees to neighbouring countries. The Government of Rwanda's policy of national reconciliation and its success in establishing a peaceful and stable country have led to the return of the vast majority of these displaced persons and refugees to their communities.
	There are three significant returns of displaced persons to Rwanda: of disarmed ex-FAR/Interahamwe soldiers and their families from the DRC; of Rwandan refugees from the eastern DRC, and; of Rwandan refugees from Tanzania.
	The Government of Rwanda hopes that some 25,000 ex-FAR/Interhamwe will be repatriated as the Pretoria Agreement is implemented. The Rwanda Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme provides for the return of ex-combatants and their families to their communities, for the counselling of ex-combatants and the communities to which they are returning, and significant economic assistance to ease the reintegration of ex-combatants into society. Special packages of assistance are available for child, female and disabled ex-combatants. The Government hopes that their withdrawal from the DRC will serve to increase the flow of the ex-combatants into the Programme. We judge that the Programme is well designed and well established, and have committed US$5 million to support it. We have also committed US$25 million to the equivalent regional demobilisation programme.
	UNHCR estimate that there were some 23,000 Rwanda refugees scattered through the Eastern DRC as at July 2002. UNHCR is assisting with the slow but steady return of these refugees to Rwanda. They advise that they have the structures and resources to continue to provide adequate food and shelter for this population.

Rwanda

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of progress being made in Rwanda to achieve the 2015 targets for universal primary education.

Clare Short: Rwanda is largely on track to achieve the 2015 target for universal primary education and. in fact, has set a national target of achieving UPE by 2010. Primary enrolment has increased by over 50 per cent. since 1996, to nearly 1.5 million children in 2001. This represents a net enrolment ratio of around 75 per cent. for both boys and girls.
	There are still serious concerns about the quality of education provision at primary level and repetition (32 per cent.) and dropout rates (14 per cent.) are high, even by regional standards. The government of Rwanda has committed itself to improving the quality of education at all levels and reducing the wastage caused by unnecessary repetition.
	The UK government is providing a package of technical assistance worth approximately #13 million to support these efforts.

Rwanda

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of children she estimates are enrolled in (a) private education and (b) state funded education in Rwanda; and what efforts have been made to increase state funded education in Rwanda.

Clare Short: There were an estimated 1.5 million children enrolled in primary schools in Rwanda in 2001. Private schooling plays a minimal role, accounting for less than 0.8 per cent. of the pupils. In the secondary sector, approximately 45 per cent. of the 140,000 students attend schools in the private sector, including church and community schools.
	The government of Rwanda has steadily increased its investment in the education sector over the past five years and in 2001 education made up over 25 per cent. of total government expenditure.
	The government of Rwanda has committed itself to achieving Universal Primary Education by 2010 and the UK government, along with other partners, will continue to provide support to this effort (including #10M budget support in 2002 which was linked to the education sector).

Rwanda

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessments her Department has made regarding the adequacy of shelter and food supplies for the returning population in Rwanda.

Clare Short: There are three significant returns of displaced persons to Rwanda: of disarmed ex-FAR/Interahamwe soldiers and their families from the DRC; of Rwandan refugees from the eastern DRC, and; of Rwandan refugees from Tanzania.
	The Government of Rwanda hopes that some 25,000 ex-FAR/Interhamwe will be repatriated from the DRC as the Pretoria Agreement is implemented. The Rwanda Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme provides support, including economic support, for the return and resettlement of these ex-combatants and their families into their communities. Tailored packages of assistance are available for child, female, chronically-ill and disabled ex-combatants. This, together with support from existing social and familial networks, should ensure that ex-combatants and their families are very well placed to meet their needs for food and shelter. My Department has provided #3.5 million for the Rwanda Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme and a further US $25 million to the equivalent regional Programme.
	UNHCR estimate that there were some 23,000 Rwanda refugees scattered through the Eastern DRC as at July 2002. UNHCR is assisting with the slow but steady return of these refugees to Rwanda. They advise that they have the structures and resources to continue to provide adequate food and shelter for this population.
	In October 2002, the Governments of Rwanda and Tanzania and the UNHCR signed the Tripartite Agreement allowing for the return of the 15,000–20,000 Rwanda refugees currently in Tanzania. UNHCR advise that they have the structures and resources to provide adequate food and shelter for this population.
	My Department will continue to monitor these exercises closely.

Rwanda

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what guidance she has given concerning the repatriation and re-integration of soldiers and ex-fighters to Rwanda from the DRC.

Clare Short: I have congratulated President Kagame on his commitment to implementing the terms of the Pretoria Agreement with the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo by withdrawing Rwandan forces from the DRC. The UK has joined with the international community in condemning the renewed outbreak of hostilities by armed groups in the Eastern DRC following the Rwandan withdrawal, and calling upon all those directly involved or involved in supplying the armed groups to cease forthwith.
	We strongly support Rwandan plans for the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration of its own soldiers and those Rwandan rebels in Congo who choose to return to Rwanda. We have committed $25 million to the World Bank's Multi-Country Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme for the Great Lakes region, under which Rwanda and the DRC will benefit, and are contributing a further $5 million directly to the Rwandan National Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme. But it is essential that hostilities in the DRC cease immediately, and that the parties to the Inter Congolese Dialogue move rapidly to agreement on an inclusive transitional government, so that a comprehensive demobilisation and reintegration process can get under way.

Rwanda

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions have taken place with the Government of Rwanda concerning access to food, water and shelter for refugees and internally displaced persons in Rwanda.

Clare Short: There are three groups of refugees or internally displaced persons in Rwanda: Congolese refugees based in camps at Kibuye and Byumba; Rwandan refugees returning from Tanzania, and; Rwandan refugees returning from the eastern DRC. UNHCR is responsible for assisting the return of all three groups.
	My Department, acting through the local EU Presidency, has raised concerns with the Government of Rwanda over the intimidation of the Congolese refugees at Kibuye and Byumba, including through the closure of schools and the termination of supplies of firewood. We will continue to monitor the situation closely, drawing on UNHCR's advice.
	In October 2002, the Governments of Rwanda and Tanzania and the UNHCR signed the Tripartite Agreement allowing for the return of the 15,000–20,000 Rwanda refugees currently in Tanzania. UNHCR advise that they have the structures and resources to provide adequate water, food and shelter for this population. DFID has made no representations to the Government of Rwanda on this exercise, but we will continue to monitor the situation carefully.
	UNHCR estimate that there were some 23,000 Rwanda refugees scattered through the Eastern DRC as at July 2002. UNHCR is assisting with the slow but steady return of these refugees to Rwanda. They advise that they have the structures and resources to continue to provide adequate water, food and shelter for this population. DFID has made no representations to the Government of Rwanda on this exercise, but we will continue to monitor the situation carefully.

Southern Africa

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are being taken to ensure that short term food aid in southern Africa does not damage local food markets.

Clare Short: Humanitarian food aid into southern Africa will only meet 30 per cent. of the estimated 4 million tonne cereal deficit faced by the region. The commercial sector and governments are expected to import and distribute the bulk of the food requirements. Although some Governments are subsidising maize prices to keep them stable, prices are at historical highs throughout the region. As imports will be insufficient to build up stocks prices will remain high until the next harvest expected from April 2003. Local food prices next year will be determined by the size of the harvest.

Southern Africa

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on progress towards the diversification of farming in southern Africa.

Clare Short: Uncertainties and interference by governments in maize pricing and input supplies have resulted in many farmers planting a wider range of crops. Although most smallholders still plant maize, more are moving into cash crops that provide higher returns. DFID supports recovery programmes in southern Africa which are supplying seeds and planting materials for a range of crops including maize that will reduce the reliance on a single staple and ensure a wider and more varied diet.

Southern Africa

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations she has made to (a) European Union countries and (b) other foreign donors calling for increased funding for the United Nations Consolidated Appeal for the Southern African famine.

Clare Short: My officials have been in regular touch with representatives of donor agencies at country level to encourage adequate responses and I have had informal discussions with Ministers from the European Union and beyond.

Malawi

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions her Department has had with the (a) IMF and (b) World Bank regarding the curtailment of a starter pack scheme for smallholder farmers in Malawi.

Clare Short: The Starter Pack Scheme has been replaced by the Targeted Inputs Programme financed by my Department and the Norwegian Government. The IMF and World Bank are fully aware of Malawi TIP arrangements, and that in 2002, the number of beneficiary poor farmer households, has been doubled to 2 million.

Nepal

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the food insecurity in Nepal has improved in recent months; whether she expects a humanitarian crisis in the mid and far west regions of Nepal to materialise; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: It is extremely difficult at present to obtain accurate information on the food situation in the hill districts of the Mid and Far West of Nepal, which have traditionally been areas of food insecurity. Recent reports suggest that food supply in those parts of the country has been affected by the poor monsoon this year, the migration of young men from conflict affected areas, and restrictions on movements and on the supply of food by Maoist and Government security forces. For example, in some mountain districts we estimate the millet crop will be only 80per cent. of normal levels.
	It is too early to say that there will be a humanitarian crisis in the Mid and Far West of the country. The greatest need at present is for more reliable information. DFID is monitoring the situation closely. DFID recently provided #115,000 to increase the capacity of the World Food Programme's Vulnerability and Monitoring Unit. We are also closely in touch with other organisations monitoring the situation including the UNDP, the International Nepal Fellowship and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
	In September I wrote, on behalf of Utstein ministers, to the Prime Minister of Nepal expressing concern over the situation and urging the Government to relax restrictions on the supply of food and medicines to conflict affected districts. The recent meeting of the international community in Kathmandu hosted by the PUSS FCO on 11 October also urged the removal of these restrictions.

Poverty Relief

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what financial aid has been given to the national Governments of (a) Mozambique and (b) Botswana from (i) her Department, (ii) the European Union and (iii) the World Bank, in each year since 1999; and what efforts are being made to ensure that such aid is used effectively for the benefit of those in extreme poverty.

Clare Short: DFID's country programme expenditure was as follows:
	£000's
	
		
			  1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Mozambique 26,281 43,893 41,281 41,022 
			 of which financial aid 20,107 25,150 20,426 30,891 
			 Botswana 3,275 3,045 2,481 2,002 
			 of which financial aid 54 51 49 46 
		
	
	Latest available figures for European Commission and World Bank expenditure are:
	£000,000's
	
		
			  1999 2000 
			  EC World Bank EC World Bank 
		
		
			 Mozambique 55.1 48.2 52.1 62.1 
			 Botswana 10.8 0.3 2.9 0.3 
		
	
	DFID's funds are spent in accordance with country strategies which focus on key poverty reduction priorities. Our strategy for Mozambique is now closely aligned with Mozambique's own poverty reduction plan, agreed last year. Our strategy for Botswana has recently been incorporated within a broader regional strategy for the middle-income countries of Southern Africa.

Poverty Relief

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what financial aid has been given to the national Government of Namibia from (a) her Department, (b) the European Union and (c) the World Bank every year since 1999, and what efforts are being made to ensure that such aid is used effectively for the benefit of those in extreme poverty.

Clare Short: DFID's expenditure in Namibia was as follows:
	
		
			 #000's 
			  1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 
			  
		
		
			  3,861 3,571 2,712 2,017 
			 of which financial aid 0 0 0 0 
		
	
	Latest available figures for the European Commission are:
	
		
			#000,000's 
			  1999 2000  
			  
		
		
			  28.7 29.9  
		
	
	There has been no significant World Bank financial aid since 1999.
	DFID's funds are spent in accordance with country strategies which focus on key poverty reduction priorities. DFID's strategy for Namibia has recently been incorporated within a broader regional strategy for the middle-income countries of Southern Africa.

Poverty Relief

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when her Department's study of the linkages between wildlife and poverty will be completed; and what the terms of reference of the study are.

Clare Short: The Final Report of the Wildlife and Poverty Study, funded by my Department, should be available to DFID within the next fortnight, and for wider consultation thereafter. The Terms of Reference for Phase 2 of the Study will be placed in the Library of the House.

World Food Programme

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list, by donor country, the contributions made to (a) the World Food Programme and (b) the UNHCR donor appeals for Afghanistan.

Clare Short: The general funding situation for humanitarian appeals are currently relatively well-funded—between 75 per cent. and 90 per cent. for the larger UN agencies I have placed in the library of the House of Commons details of the contributions made to WFP and UNHCR by donor countries.

Flight Budgets

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what percentage of each division's budget has been spent on flights in each year since 1999;
	(2)  what her Department's budget has been for flights, broken down by division, in each year since 1999.

Clare Short: Information in the format requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Information on flight spend held centrally by my Department's contracted travel agent is as follows:
	1999/2000: #7,189,382
	2000/2001: #8,526,819
	2001/2002: #8,748,097
	These figures do not include travel costs incurred by overseas offices booked through an overseas travel agent.

Flight Budgets

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what advice is given to her Department's staff when booking flights with regard to (a) price and (b) budget.

Clare Short: In accordance with my Department's policy, staff will book the most efficient and economical means of travel, taking into account the full range of costs involved, to meet business needs.
	DFID's travel agent is contracted to provide a value for money service to staff including, where available, a choice of flights and costs. The travel agent also provides staff with advice on centrally negotiated government airfares.
	All official travel is authorised at appropriate levels to check for compliance with policy and budget.

Food Requirements (Africa)

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the latest food aid requirements of (a) Zimbabwe, (b) Malawi, (c) Zambia, (d) Angola, (e) Mozambique, (f) Lesotho, (g) Swaziland and (f) Nambia.

Clare Short: The Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Vulnerability Assessment Committee of the Southern Africa Development Community recently estimated the following emergency cereal food requirements to the end of March 2003:
	Zimbabwe
	486,000 MT
	Malawi
	237,000 MT
	Zambia
	224,000 MT
	Mozambique48,000 MT
	Lesotho
	36,000 MT
	Swaziland
	20,000 MT
	In respect of Angola, the WFP appealed for funding to provide 305,598 MT to the end of 2003.
	In respect of Namibia, the preliminary findings of a World Food Programme drought assessment indicate a high cereal deficit in the north of the country through to the end of April 2003. The Government of Namibia estimates that relief assistance of both food and non-food items will be required for 340,000 vulnerable people, and expects to be able to meet US$ 9.5 million of the estimated US$ 14 million cost from its own resources.

Botswana

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her Department's assessment is of the progress of reproductive health care in medical centres in Botswana.

Clare Short: Botswana has invested heavily in the delivery of basic services across the country, and is making significant progress in the provision of reproductive health care. The very high prevalence of HIV/AIDS will seriously affect progress towards all reproductive health goals. However, Botswana is making huge efforts to deliver good quality prevention programmes and medical care for those who are HIV+. This should help to strengthen reproductive health care systems more generally in the country's medical centres.

Botswana

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of UK assistance is spent on (a) care workers, (b) nurses, (c) medical centres and (d) HIV/AIDS programmes in Botswana.

Clare Short: The UK provides no direct support for care workers, nurses and medical centres in Botswana. Botswana, along with Lesotho, Swaziland and Namibia, benefits from a regional DFID HIV/AIDS programme worth over #7.5 million over five years. The programme has several strands, including strengthening the Ministry of Health's response in each country.

Developing Countries

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions she has had with the (a) Serious Fraud Office, (b) National Criminal Intelligence Service and (c) Financial Services Authority regarding a sharing of expertise in the development of institutions to tackle corruption and money laundering within developing countries.

Clare Short: My Department is funding a dedicated post within the National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS) to provide technical assistance to developing countries, and countries in transition, for strengthening financial intelligence systems to combat money laundering. The post became operational in September 2002 and will be supported initially for three years. One responsibility of the post will be to develop training materials appropriate for use in developing countries.
	DFID is also providing the necessary funds to enable NCIS to serve as the Secretariat for the Egmont Group, the international network of Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs). This support is for two years and commenced in October 2001. The Egmont Group plays a critical role in developing international collaboration in financial intelligence related to money laundering, including helping to establish new FIUs.
	In May 2002, DFID organised a conference for representatives from 14 developing countries to provide advice on how they can seek assistance from the United Kingdom in investigating, freezing and confiscating assets of criminal origin that are believed to be located in this country. The Serious Fraud Office contributed significantly to this event.

Developing Countries

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress is being made towards the creation of a universal representative set of indicators for the determination of good governance in developing countries.

Clare Short: There is no universally agreed set of governance indicators. The Government is promoting the use of governance indicators where that will serve the objective of improving the quality of government in developing countries. We have supported the development of the governance assessments that will form part of the peer reviews of African countries in the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). We have urged developing countries to improve the quality of their public expenditure and financial management, most recently at the annual meetings of the Washington institutions, and proposed the wider use of expenditure tracking indicators to measure their progress. These objectives and indicators are included in DFID's Service Delivery Agreement of its Public Service Agreement.

Nepal

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding the UK Government are providing to Nepalese authorities for a HIV/Aids strategy; and if she will make a statement.

Clare Short: Since January 2001 DFID has contributed #1.7 million to a short-term targeted response to stabilise and contain the concentrated HIV/AIDS epidemic among female sex workers, their clients and injecting drug users.
	Part of this support has been used to assist with the development of the Government's national HIV/AIDS strategy which will set out priorities for actions over the next five years. The national HIV/AIDs strategy is expected to issue in the December 2002. I anticipate that DFID support to the strategy will amount to #15 million over 5 years or approximately 25 per cent. of the total cost of the national strategy.

Malawi

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans are in place to ensue that smallholder farmers in Malawi have access to adequate seed and fertiliser for the 2002–03 agricultural season.

Clare Short: The 2002–03 Targeted Inputs programme is supplying inputs to two million small-holder farmers across Malawi. This follows a 2002 winter input programme, which benefited 300,000 households. These programmes provide seed and fertiliser for maize and major legume crops. My Department is working with Government, other donors and civil society organisations to ensure co-ordination of these activities and additional programmes for inputs to crop diversification, tools for cultivation and irrigation.

Malawi

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions she has had with the Government of Malawi regarding plans about the decision to scale down the Universal Starter Pack programme.

Clare Short: The Starter Pack Scheme began in 1998–99 with universal provision of seeds and fertilisers to Malawian farmers. My Department agreed with the Government of Malawi that a Targeted Inputs Programme (TIP) should replace the Starter Pack Scheme from 2000/2001 to concentrate benefits on the poorest farmers. In 2002 the TIP has been doubled to provide for 2 million farming families as part of the co-ordinated response to the current food crisis. The number will be reviewed annually as part of a long-term National Food Security Strategy currently being developed by Government, donors and Civil Society.

Malawi

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her assessment is of the effectiveness of Food for Work programme in Malawi; and how many beneficiaries she estimates this has reached, since January 2002.

Clare Short: Programmes providing Food or Cash for work for the poor in Malawi are being supported by a number of agencies. Financial support is provided by the Malawi Government, donors and Civil Society Organisations. My Department plays a leading role in helping to ensure these programmes are effectively co-ordinated within a National Safety Nets Strategy. During 2002 DFID has supported a large number of government led initiatives aimed at the poorest members of rural communities, representing over 4 million days of employment.

Afghanistan

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will set out the allocation of development money allocated to the reconstruction of Afghanistan (a) in 2001–02, and (b) for each of the next three years; and if she will set out the total amount that has been spent for (i) 2001–02 and (ii) 2002–03.

Clare Short: At Tokyo in January we pledged #200 million over 5 years to Afghanistan, we did not divide this in to specific amounts for separate financial years. So far in the current financial year we have disbursed over #33 million of our budget of #55 million. In 2001–02 we gave approximately #60 million to Afghanistan for immediate humanitarian relief activities, including food aid and support for returning refugees. International support for such appeals has already provided some essential building blocks for longer term reconstruction: for example a polio vaccination programme has reached 6 million children and 3 million children are now back at school.

Bushmeat Trade

John Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what direct assistance is given to customs officers in (a) South American and (b) West African countries to prevent the illegal trade in bushmeat.

Clare Short: DFID is not giving direct assistance to customs officers in South America or West Africa to prevent the illegal trade in bushmeat. DEFRA and HMCE ensure that importation to the UK complies with CITES controls on endangered species. DEFRA is carrying out an awareness-raising campaign in these regions aimed at reducing the illegal trade of meat into the UK. My Department's primary role is to support poverty reduction, which we see as key to ensuring the sustainable management of natural resources, including wildlife, in poor countries.

Bushmeat Trade

John Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many endangered wild animal species are classified as bushmeat.

Clare Short: There is no formal classification of which endangered species constitute bushmeat within the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. However, a recent review of commercially valuable bushmeat species in Africa (CITES Document 11.44) concluded that of forty-two primary species caught and traded, eight species are ''endangered'' (i.e. listed on CITES Appendix 1) and one species (elephant) has some ''endangered'' populations. The 8 ''endangered'' species are Leopard, Chimpanzee, Bonobo, Gorilla, Mandrill, Drill, Diana guenon/monkey and Jentink's duiker.

Famine (Africa)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the impact that the spread of HIV/AIDS is having on the famine in Africa.

Clare Short: The HIV/AIDS epidemic poses a major threat to food security in Sub Saharan Africa, and has served to contribute to, and greatly exacerbate southern Africa's growing famine.
	HIV/AIDS is hitting agricultural productivity hard. In just two decades AIDS has killed seven million farmers in Africa and in some countries, households and villages are losing from 10–50 per cent. of agricultural productivity due to the disease.
	HIV/AIDS impacts on reduced food availability as workers become too ill to work the land, care for livestock and maintain essential machinery. At a family level food production has fallen by as much as 80 per cent. when the main producer is affected. This is especially true in areas such as Southern Africa, which uses labour-intensive farming methods.
	Goals to eradicate hunger and poverty must therefore include plans to combat the spread and the impact of the HIV epidemic through multi-sectoral HIV/AIDS prevention and care interventions.

Famine (Africa)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the Government intends to make additional resources available to support the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS in the light of its contribution to the current famine in Africa.

Clare Short: DFID's overall programme in Africa is set to increase from 640 million pounds sterling this year to one billion pounds sterling by 2006 and HIV/AIDS will remain one of our highest priorities in the region. We will be focusing efforts on mainstreaming our response to HIV/AIDS across sectors, such as agriculture, education, health etc, to ensure that the impact of HIV/AIDS is better addressed.
	DFID spent over 55 million pounds in Africa on HIV/AIDS programmes and related health systems strengthening in the financial year 2000–2001. Reflecting our increased commitment to addressing HIV/AIDS, so far this year (2001–2002), we have committed an additional 180 million pounds to tackle HIV/AIDS in Africa. A further $200 million dollars (#140 million pounds approximately) has been pledged by the UK to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Ilois People

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what expenditure BIOT has undertaken on democratic representation of the Ilois people; and what is the current level of welfare spending.

Mike O'Brien: Although there has been no specific expenditure on welfare and democratic representation of the Chagossians (Ilois), the BIOT Government has funded the various stages of the recent feasibility study into the resettlement of the Chagos Archipelago, and had estimated #300,000 expenditure this year for the visit to the outer islands of the archipelago by the Chagossians in October 2002 which fell through due to the withdrawal of the vessel by the shipping company.

Indonesia

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  pursuant to his answer of 21 June 2002, Official Report, column 633W, on Malcolm Rennie and Brian Peters, when the families of Brian Peters and Malcolm Rennie were informed of the report by HM Vice-Consul in Jakarta on the men's funeral service;
	(2)  pursuant to his answer of 21 June, 2002, Official Report, column 633W, on Malcolm Rennie and Brian Peters, whether information from interviews conducted by James Dunn in 1977 regarding the deaths of Malcolm Rennie and Brian Peters has been passed to the families.

Mike O'Brien: Foreign Office consular files are handled differently to other FCO records. Because of the transient nature of consular cases, papers on them are usually only kept for 7 years. Unlike most other Foreign Office papers, they are not part of the public record, and so are then destroyed.
	We therefore cannot confirm whether the information from the interviews conducted by James Dunn was passed to the families at the time. Nor are we able to confirm when the families were first informed of the report by the Vice Consul in Jakarta on the men's funeral service. Copies of the 1975 and 1976 political files on this subject hove now been passed to the families. The 1977 political files will be released under normal terms of the thirty year rule in 2008.

Platon Obukhov

David Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in the case of Platon Obukhov, arrested in Russia in 1996 on charges of spying for Britain; what recent representations he has made for his release; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has followed the case of Mr. Obukhov from a humanitarian point of view. Following his re-trial, on 17 May 2002 the Moscow City Court reaffirmed his conviction, but ruled that he could not be held criminally responsible for his actions, and that he should be sent to a psychiatric hospital for treatment.

Istanbul

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many telephone lines are dedicated to dealing with queries from the general public in the British Consulate-General in Istanbul.

Mike O'Brien: There are two telephone lines. One is dedicated to the visa section only and the other deals with visa enquiries as well as all other enquiries to the British Consulate General.

Istanbul

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what checks are made on the response times of the Consultate-General in Istanbul to queries left through the visa inquiry line.

Mike O'Brien: The Visa Section managers monitor this regularly to ensure that all telephone calls are answered quickly and helpfully. In accordance with UKvisas best practice guidelines, and with the published Service Standards for Central Government and its agencies.

Istanbul

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations his Department has received regarding poor response times from queries left with the Consultate-General in Istanbul through the visa inquiry line.

Mike O'Brien: I am advised that this Department has not received any representations recently regarding poor response times.

Istanbul

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the average response time of the Consultate-General in Istanbul for messages left by members of the public through the visa inquiry line was in the most recent available year.

Mike O'Brien: All telephone enquiries are responded to in accordance with Best Practice guidelines. The facilities available do not enable the average response time to be measured.

Lebanon

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which nation's troops were stationed in the UN base in the Lebanon on the border with Israel near Mount Dov on 7 October 2000 near to the site of the kidnap of Benny Avraham, Adi Avitan and Umar Souad.

Mike O'Brien: An Indian battalion, assigned to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, was stationed there at that time.

Kidnaps

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what measures he has undertaken in respect of the kidnap of Elchanan Tenenbium;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with (a) the Syrian Government, (b) the Syrian Ambassador in London, (c) the Head of Hizbullah in respect of the kidnap of Elchanan Tenenbium; and what was the outcome of these discussions.

Mike O'Brien: HMG has made a number of representations to governments in the Middle East about the fate of Elchanan Tannenbaum and missing Israeli soldiers, and will continue to do so. Most recently our Ambassadors in Beirut and Damascus raised them with their host governments on 3 October 2002 and 19 September 2002, respectively. They took note of our interest. Also on 12 December 2001, our Ambassador in Beirut raised hostage taking in general terms with Hizballah. On each occasion we emphasised that hostage taking was wrong and that those holding hostages should free them at once.
	Our Ambassador in Tel Aviv met families of the missing men, including Mr. Tannenbaum's son, on 9 September 2002.

Kidnaps

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will obtain a copy of the two video tapes in the possession of Taria Larsen of the UN showing the kidnap of Benny Avraham, Adi Avitan and Umar Souad on 7 October 2000.

Mike O'Brien: There are no videotapes or photographs of the abduction of the soldiers in the UN's possession: the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) did not witness or film the kidnapping. The UN has two related videotapes, which it has shared with the families of the abducted soldiers. These two videos are not available for release.
	The first tape—filmed by the Indian battalion assigned to UNIFIL on 8 October 2000—is of the attempted recovery of two UN vehicles. The UN did recover items from within them. But during the operation Hizbollah returned and claimed the vehicles. The second tape—filmed by an unknown person—showed the shelling of Israel Defence Forces positions along the Blue Line. Neither tape gives any indication about the fate of the kidnapped soldiers.

Dr. Lesley McCulloch

Alan Reid: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to secure the release of Dr. Lesley McCulloch from detention in Indonesia; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: We have raised Lesley McCulloch's case with the Indonesian authorities a number of times and at high levels. We have urged the Indonesian authorities to process Ms McCulloch's case expeditiously. Our consular staff have visited Ms McCulloch and continue to give her all the assistance they properly can.

Dr. Lesley McCulloch

Alan Reid: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Argyll and Bute, dated 20 September, regarding Dr. Lesley McCulloch.

Mike O'Brien: My noble Friend, Baroness Amos, Minister responsible for Consular matters, replied to the hon. Member for Argyll and Bute on 17 October.

Diego Garcia

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government have taken in response to the High Court judgment in 2000 upholding the special military status of Diego Garcia.

Mike O'Brien: Following the High Court judgment, the BIOT Immigration Ordinance 1971 was replaced by the Immigration (Amendment) Ordinance 2000 which exempts Chagossians from the requirement to obtain a permit to return and reside in any part of the Territory except (for defence reasons) Diego Garcia. All other persons still require a permit to enter any part of the Territory.

Saddam Hussein

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the meetings held between Saddam Hussein and British Ministers since July 1979.

Mike O'Brien: Since July 1979, the following Ministers have held meetings with Saddam Hussein:
	July 1979 Lord Carrington (Foreign Secretary)
	July 1980 Douglas Hurd (Minister of State, FCO)
	November 1981 John Biffen (Trade Secretary)
	March 1983 Douglas Hurd (Foreign Secretary)
	November 1984 Richard Luce (Minister of State, FCO)
	February 1988 David Mellor (Minister of State, FCO)

Mordechai Vanunu

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with (a) his United States counterpart and (b) his counterparts in the European Union in respect of seeking early release of Mordechai Vanunu.

Mike O'Brien: We have not discussed Mr. Vanunu's detention with US or EU colleagues. But we have raised it with the Israeli authorities, most recently on 17 October when our Embassy in Tel Aviv did so with the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They took note of our interest and agreed to keep the Embassy informed of developments. The Embassy in Tel Aviv will monitor Mr. Vanunu's parole hearing, which is expected to start on 29 October.

Asylum Seekers

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many times he has overturned a decision by an ECO to refuse admission to the UK of an applicant.

Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not overturned any entry clearance decisions. As Minister responsible for entry clearance, I have overturned one decision since my appointment as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in May 2002.

Entry Clearance

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many entry clearance operations he has visited since June 2001.

Mike O'Brien: When travelling overseas, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs makes every effort to meet staff—both UK based and locally engaged—working in all sections of our overseas missions, including in the entry clearance sections.

Uganda

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Ugandan Government in respect of their closure of the Monitor newspaper.

Denis MacShane: On 14 October the EU Presidency in Kampala, on behalf of the United Kingdom and other EU member states, raised our concerns about the closure of the Monitor newspaper with the Ugandan Minister of State for Information. The Presidency also underlined the importance the EU attaches to freedom of expression and the independence of the media. The Minister reassured the EU Presidency that the Monitor would reopen shortly.
	The Monitor reopened on 17 October.

PRIME MINISTER

Nuclear Weapons (Russia)

Llew Smith: To ask the Prime Minister what matters in respect of United Kingdom support for the dismantling and clear-up of Russia's nuclear weapons, and the management of surplus former military fissile material, were discussed during his meetings in Russia on 10 October.

Tony Blair: In our meeting and in the context of the G8 Global Partnership against the Proliferation of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction I impressed upon President Putin the need to conclude the necessary legal framework agreement quickly, in particular resolution of the issue of third party liability. As I confirmed to Parliament in July, the UK is prepared to commit up to $750m over ten years as part of the G8 Global Partnership initiative.
	Officials plan a further early meeting with the Russian authorities to try to conclude the UK/Russia bilateral agreement and the Multilateral Nuclear Environmental Programme for the Russian Federation (MNEPR) agreement.

Winning the Generation Game

David Willetts: To ask the Prime Minister, what progress has been made on each of the 75 conclusions in the Performance and Innovation Unit report, Winning the Generation Game: Improving Opportunities for People Aged 50–65 in Work and Community Activity, published in April 2002.

Ian McCartney: I have been asked to reply.
	Progress report on the implementation of the Performance and Innovation Unit's report Winning the Generation Game has been placed in the library. It is also available on the internet at http://www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/innovation/about/impacts.shtml WINNING.
	The Government will continue to report regularly on the implementation of policies affecting older people.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Human Rights

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on the Court of Appeal decisions in (a) R. v. Brent London Borough Council and others and (b) R v. Oxfordshire County Council's Exclusion Panel and Another on the necessity for Government guidance notes to be compliant with statute and the Human Rights Act 1998; and what future role she envisages for guidance notes.

Stephen Twigg: The key point of the Court of Appeal's judgment in these consolidated cases, as far as my Department is concerned, is that the legislation enabling the Secretary of State to give guidance to headteachers, local education authorities and appeal panels in relation to the exclusion of pupils from school complies with the Human Rights Act 1998, and in particular with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the right to a fair hearing). So far as the guidance applicable to these cases was concerned, the Court went on to hold that neither its content nor the fact that the exclusion appeal panels had a statutory duty to have regard to it in determining the appellant pupils' appeals compromised the pupils' right to a fair hearing before an independent and impartial tribunal. However, the Secretary of State is mindful of the observations which the Court made with regard to using her powers to issue guidance and will bear them in mind when issuing revised guidance.
	As to the future, I envisage that the Secretary of State will continue to use her statutory powers to give guidance for the purposes of promoting fairness and consistency in decision-making.

Educational Needs

Dave Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on what basis the ethnicity factor in the additional educational needs allocates extra resources to all ethnic groups; if she will publish the evidence that her Department has used to assess need under the AEN factor; how many children receive increased funding from the ethnicity factor with the AEN; how much funding was distributed under the ethnicity factor to local councils in the years 2000–01 and 2001–02; and what her Department's estimate is for next year.

Stephen Twigg: Under the current system of Education Standard Spending Assessments (SSA), extra resources are allocated to LEAs in recognition of the additional educational needs of children in minority ethnic groups on the basis of country of birth data taken from the 1991 national census. The number of children covered is 12 per cent. of the total population of children under the age of 16. The amount of funding distributed using this factor was #434 million in 2000–01 and #448 million in 2001–02. The amount of funding to be distributed for Additional Educational Needs for 2003–04 will depend on decisions yet to be taken about the new formula for LEA funding to be introduced from April 2003. Those decisions will be informed by research undertaken by PricewaterhouseCoopers, a copy of whose report has been placed in the House Library, and by responses to the consultation on Local Government Finance, which ran from 8 July to 30 September.

Disruptive Pupils

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures will be taken over the next year to ensure that disruptive pupils are removed from classes in the run up to major exams.

Stephen Twigg: We believe that schools should be orderly and disciplined places of learning at all times. In that context it is right that teachers and headteachers should have the power to remove disruptive pupils from the classroom. This may mean excluding them from school, for a fixed period or permanently, while maintaining their education in alternative provision.
	Since taking office the Government has devoted far greater resources than ever before to supporting teachers in dealing with disruptive behaviour in the classroom. There are now over 1,050 Learning Support Units in schools helping to tackle classroom disruption. Further expansion of our Excellence in Cities (EiC) and Excellence Clusters programmes will provide a further 140 Learning Support Units. The #66m package announced in the Budget will fund, among other things, more Learning Support Units, Behaviour and Education Support Teams and summer activities aimed at improving discipline.

Exclusions

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she will introduce changes to the system of independent appeal panels.

Stephen Twigg: Section 52 of the Education Act 2002 replaces the previous arrangements for exclusion appeal panels which have been in existence in various forms since being introduced by the Education (No 2) Act 1986.
	The new arrangements will be set out in regulations under section 52 which we plan to lay before the House in time to come into force in January 2003.

Exclusions

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many exclusions have been overturned on appeal in the last six months.

Stephen Twigg: Information on exclusion appeals is only collected on an annual basis. The latest figures available are for the 2000/01 school year, when 9,210 permanent exclusions gave rise to 983 appeals. 314 permanent exclusions were overturned on appeal—3 per cent. of the total number of permanent exclusions.

Exclusions

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what legal powers she has to overturn a decision by an independent appeal panel.

Stephen Twigg: The Secretary of State has no legal powers to overturn a decision by an independent appeal panel.

Exclusions

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what changes there have been to the monthly average of (a) exclusions, (b) appeals and (c) successful appeals since the publication of the 2001–02 Education Bill.

Stephen Twigg: This information is not held centrally. My Department collects data on permanent exclusions and exclusion appeals annually in relation to the school year as a whole. Provisional data for the last school year—2001–02—will be published in a Statistical First Release in May 2003.

Special Educational Needs

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidelines there are for local education authorities to allocate funds for special needs teaching in schools broken down by type of school.

Stephen Twigg: The allocation of funding to maintained schools by local education authorities is governed by regulations made under section 47 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. The current (2002) regulations give wide discretion to authorities in the factors and criteria to be used for the funding of special needs, both in mainstream schools and in special schools. In November 2001, the Department issued good practice guidance The Distribution of Resources to Support Inclusion, on approaches to the delegation and distribution of resources for meeting the needs of pupils with special educational needs and those with other additional needs in mainstream schools. From 2003 onwards the schools forums established under s.43 of the Education Act 2002 will advise local education authorities on their funding arrangements for special needs.

Disabled Students (Access)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what progress has been made by each local education authority in developing strategies to improve accessibility for disabled pupils; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Twigg: This information is not collected centrally. The statutory duty on local education authorities to improve accessibility for disabled pupils came into effect from 1 September 2002 and requires them to publish their strategies on 1 April 2003. OfSTED will be monitoring the implementation of this new duty, including the quality of local education authorities' accessibility strategies.
	The School Access Initiative was established in 1996 to help local education authorities improve the accessibility of their schools to disabled pupils. Over #174 million has been made available since that date, including some #70m in 2002–03. A further #300m will be available during 2003–04 to 2005–06.

Asylum Seekers' Accommodation Centres

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the subject areas in the national curriculum that will not be available to children taught in asylum seekers' accommodation centres.

Stephen Twigg: holding answer 21 October
	All the National Curriculum subjects will be taught in accommodation centres. Departmental officials are working with the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) to agree how this commitment can be delivered to maximise the educational opportunities for children and young people who will be in these centres for a maximum of 9 months. There will also be intensive support provided to help them learn English.

Asylum Seekers' Accommodation Centres

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills who will be responsible for identifying gifted and talented children in asylum seekers' accommodation centres.

Stephen Twigg: holding answer 21 October
	On arrival in an accommodation centre, children will receive an initial assessment, covering their previous educational experience, attainment and knowledge of English. It will be the responsibility of the education contractor to conduct these assessments and, by so doing, identify any gifted and talented children. After which appropriate provision will be made, if necessary, (but exceptionally) outside the accommodation centres.

Spell-It Research

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to incorporate the Spell-It infant research into mainstream schools.

Stephen Twigg: We were pleased to support this research in partnership with the Dyslexia Institute, York University, the Community Fund, WH Smith and the Dyslexia Institute's Bursary Fund.
	We will look carefully at the findings in the context of our interest in the role of early intervention in addressing special educational needs. Officials plan to meet with representatives of the Dyslexia Institute to discuss the findings and other issues associated with dyslexia and literacy.

Separate Education

Linda Gilroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to educate (a) children seeking asylum and (b) other children recently arrived in the UK separately from other children.

Stephen Twigg: holding answer 21 October
	All recently arrived children, whatever their immigration status, are given the same opportunities as all other children to access education. The Department has no plans to provide separate education for unaccompanied asylum seeker children or for the vast majority of other children recently arrived in the UK.
	A minority of children whose families seek asylum and are destitute may be educated in accommodation centres which will provide a complete support package for the family, including education. This education will be of the same breadth and quality as that delivered in schools and will be specifically tailored to meet their particular needs. There will be also be intensive support provided to help them learn English and the education provision will be inspected by Ofsted.

University Drop-out Rates

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what her estimate of the drop-out rate at each English university for the last year for which figures are available is; and if she will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The available information on non-completion rates, showing figures for each HE institution in the UK, is contained in ''Performance Indicators in Higher Education'', published by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). Copies of the latest edition, covering students who entered HE in 1998/99, are available in the House library.
	The figures show an overall non-completion rate of 17 per cent., a figure which has stayed roughly constant since 1991–92. In 2000, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published figures comparing estimates of non-completion in member countries, and these showed that the UK had the second lowest non-completion rate among OECD countries.

ADVOCATE-GENERAL

Human Rights Trials

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Advocate-General what steps she is taking to seek clarification of the law in relation to undue delay in trial contrary to Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Lynda Clark: I intervened in the case of R v HMA which is a leading case concerning pre-trial delay. I appeared personally in the case before the Appeal Court in Scotland on 12–14 March and before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council on 15–16 October 2002. Given that the case was only heard last week, it will be some time before the Judicial Committee issues its opinion.

Devolution

Malcolm Savidge: To ask the Advocate-General what devolution issues have been raised with her since 10 July under the Scotland Act 1998.

Lynda Clark: I refer my hon. Friend to my oral answer today, Official Report, c. 113.

SCOTLAND

Pensioners

Malcolm Savidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if she will make a statement on Government policies designed to raise the living standards of Scottish pensioners.

Helen Liddell: We have introduced the Minimum Income Guarantee for poorer pensioners; Winter Fuel Payments for people aged 60 and over; free TV licences for the over 75s; and will introduce the new pension credit next year. This will mean that no single pensioner need live on less than #100 a week and no pensioner couple on less than #154 a week.

Common Agricultural Policy

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions she has had with the Scottish Executive about reform of the CAP.

Helen Liddell: I have regular discussions with the Scottish Executive on a wide range of issues.

Friends of Scotland Scheme

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many volunteers have been signed up to the Friends of Scotland scheme.

Helen Liddell: The Scotland Office has to date recruited well over 100 people in 16 countries.

Regional Airports

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if she will make a statement on regional airports in Scotland.

Helen Liddell: The Government's Consultation Document, ''The Future Development of Air Transport in the United Kingdom: Scotland'' seeks views on a number of important aspects of air services within Scotland including the future development of airports.
	These views will help inform the Government's forthcoming Aviation White Paper which will set out the long term strategy to provide the policy and infrastructural framework for the development of air services for all of Scotland over the next 30 years.

Royal Navy Facilities

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions she has had with Secretary of State for Defence on Royal Navy facilities in Scotland.

Helen Liddell: I have regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Defence on a range of defence matters including Navy facilities in Scotland.
	HMNB Clyde represents one of, if not the, largest single site industrial employer in Scotland. The decision to base the Astute Class submarines at Faslane with an estimated service life of 20 years, alongside the existing Vanguard Class, will provide long term job security for many of the 5000 Naval Base employees.

Meat Imports

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions she has had with the Scottish Executive and DEFRA regarding French action in preventing imports of Scottish meat and its effects on the Scottish agriculture industry.

Anne McGuire: I have regular discussions with the Scottish Executive and DEFRA on a wide range of issues.
	The French Government announced on 2 October that it had decided to lift the ban on British beef imports. Implementation of the decision is expected soon.

Defence Jobs

Russell Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent assessment she has made of the number of defence-related jobs in Scotland.

Anne McGuire: In 2000 (the latest year for which figures are available) the total deployment of defence personnel in Scotland was 24,400 of whom 15,100 were service personnel and 9,300 were civilian employees. This represents around 9.2per cent. of UK defence personnel deployment.

Benefits

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps she is taking to encourage the take-up of benefits by Scottish pensioners.

Anne McGuire: We are determined to improve take up. The Department for Work and Pensions have established their new Pension Service; we have revised and shortened the claim form for the Minimum Income Guarantee; and we are working with pensioner organisations and local authorities on a range of initiatives.

Rosyth Ferry Service

John MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if she will make a statement on the introduction of the ferry service from Rosyth to Europe.

Helen Liddell: The commencement earlier this year of Scotland's new direct ferry link with mainland Europe is a great boost to Scotland's environment with the potential for thousands of miles of lorry trips to be taken off our roads. It is more than just that though; it also improves our competitive position as an exporting nation and as a tourist destination. Exporters now have the option of a direct, regular & reliable route to our key markets in the heart of Europe and I would encourage freight companies to think carefully about making best use of this.
	The establishment of this historic new ferry service is yet another example of how effective co-operation between Scottish Ministers and the Government within the devolution settlement is delivering tangible benefits to Scottish people and businesses in their daily lives.

Pensions

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what action she is taking to consult Scottish business and trade union interests on macro-economic issues relating to pensions.

Anne McGuire: My right hon. Friend and I have frequent meetings with business and trade union interests. The Government will publish a pensions Green Paper later this year which will initiate a wide-ranging consultation process.

Universal Bank

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions she has had with the Department for Trade and Industry and the Department for Work and Pensions regarding the Universal Bank.

Anne McGuire: I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues on a wide range of matters.

Universal Bank

John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions she has had with the Department for Trade and Industry and the Department for Work and Pensions regarding the Universal Bank.

Anne McGuire: I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues on a wide range of matters.

Prisoner's Rights

Tam Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps she is taking to ensure that the rights of prisoners under Scottish law are considered in the debate on the Future of Europe with reference to the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

Helen Liddell: The Government is committed to maintaining a policy towards the EU that focuses on a Union that is more transparent, accountable, effective, and better able to deliver on issues which matter to its citizens. This provides our focus to the Future of Europe debate.
	In the context of the planned enlargement to 25 or more States, the framework for the debate on the Future of Europe amounts to a fundamental re-examination of the institutional architecture of the EU. The Government's priority is to make sure that any eventual changes are designed to make the EU better able to ensure, and more focussed upon, the delivery of results for the people of Europe.
	The Government is in regular contact with the devolved administrations, which are involved in the debate on the Future of Europe in line with the terms of the Concordat on the Co-ordination of EU Policy Issues.

Drugs

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, when she last met the Home Secretary to discuss changes in drug classification, and its implications for the Scottish legal framework.

Anne McGuire: My right hon. Friend has regular discussions with the Home Secretary on a range of issues.
	The classification of drugs is a reserved matter and is governed by the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, which applies across the United Kingdom. Any changes in classification will therefore apply in Scotland.

Drugs

John Lyons: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps she is taking to intensify the campaign against drugs in Scotland.

Anne McGuire: We are continuing to work with Home Office and Scottish Executive colleagues to stress the anti-drugs message and highlight drug control initiatives. The new Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 extends to Scotland and will put in place an enhanced and effective system for seizing assets from drug related crime and other criminal activity.

National Minimum Wage

Tom Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps are being taken to ensure the enforcement of the national minimum wage in Scotland.

Anne McGuire: Inland Revenue has specialist enforcement teams based in Aberdeen and East Kilbride who are responsible for enforcing the national minimum wage in Scotland. The teams follow up complaints made by workers and third parties about non-compliance and use other Revenue risk based data to identify employers for enquiry. Since April 1999, the teams have conducted 1,910 inspections and recovered of over #660,000 in wage arrears for low paid workers in Scotland.

Scottish Parliament

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, when she plans to announce the results of the consultation process on the size of the Scottish Parliament.

Helen Liddell: I hope to be able to announce a decision on the future size of the Scottish Parliament before the end of the year.

Child Protection

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if she will create (a) a child-safeguarding board and (b) multi-agency child safeguarding teams in Scotland to increase the effectiveness of professionals in the field.

Anne McGuire: This is a devolved matter for the Scottish Executive.

Gaelic Broadcasting

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what plans she has to encourage Gaelic broadcasting.

Helen Liddell: The Government set out its plans for a new body to oversee Gaelic broadcasting in the policy document that accompanied the draft Communications Bill published on 7 May. The new body would build on the strengths of the Gaelic Broadcasting Committee and have a broader representative base, including the main broadcaster interests and others responsible for the development of Gaelic language and culture. It would also have powers to develop a strategy for a Gaelic television and radio service to meet the aspirations of the Gaelic community.

Ship Building

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if she will make a statement on the Scotland Office's role in promoting the shipbuilding industry in Scotland.

Helen Liddell: Shipbuilding, as a modern, innovative and technology intensive industry, continues to make an important contribution to the Scottish economy and has gained significant benefits from defence procurement. My Department and I will continue to ensure that the particular Scottish interests within UK shipbuilding are represented both at home and abroad. As such I was delighted to visit Scotstoun on 22 June to perform the launch ceremony for KDB Jerambak, the third Offshore Patrol Vessel on order from the Royal Brunei Navy.

TREASURY

Euro

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if his Department has completed the preliminary technical work relating to five economic tests for the euro and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when he plans to start the assessment of the five economic tests for euro membership; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 15 October, Official Report, column 607W.

Euro

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which staff within Her Majesty's Treasury will carry out the assessment of the five economic tests for membership of the euro; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Romford (Mr. Rosindell) on 20 May, Official Report, column 105W.

Euro

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on his assessment of how the monetary transmission mechanism of the UK economy differs from that of the euro area.

Ruth Kelly: The Government has said that it will complete an assessment of the five economic tests within two years of the start of this Parliament. The assessment has not yet started, but the necessary preliminary analysis—technical work that is necessary to allow us to undertake the assessment within two years as promised—is underway.
	As we set out in ''Paper for the Treasury Select Committee on the Treasury's Approach to the Preliminary and Technical Work'' issued on 6 September: ''A number of supporting studies will be published encompassing the preliminary and technical work . . . When the assessment is complete, the detailed supporting studies will be published alongside, all to be subject to intensive public scrutiny and debate.'' More detail on the supporting studies is given in the Paper.

EU Growth and Stability Pact

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on progress in reforming the European Union Growth and Stability Pact.

Ruth Kelly: The Government has consistently said that it supports a prudent interpretation of the Stability Pact, which takes into account the impact of the economic cycle, sustainability and the important role of public investment. We continue to discuss this with our EU colleagues.

Indirect Taxation

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what improvements have been made to the collection of statistics published on 5 May 1998, Official Report, column 331; what plans he has to introduce new indices of indirect taxation; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The statistics in question relate to ''typical'' families in the UK. The impact of indirect taxes on a typical family are imprecise as spending patterns vary widely between households with the same composition and income level. We have no plans to introduce new indices of indirect taxation.

National Insurance Contributions

David Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many married women paying the reduced rate of National Insurance contributions opted to pay the full rate in each year since 1977;
	(2)  how many married women who have paid reduced rate National Insurance contributions opted to buy back past years to increase their benefit entitlement, in each year since 1977.

Dawn Primarolo: The number of married women paying at the reduced rate of National Insurance contributions who opted to pay the full rate would only be available for the years requested at disproportionate cost. However, available estimates based on a 3 per cent. sample of the National Insurance Recording System (NIRS2) are in the table.
	
		
			  Numbers of women opting to pay at the full rate after paying reduced rate contributions 
		
		
			 1997–1998 12,100 
			 1998–1999 14,900 
			 1999–2000 11,600 
			 2000–2001 7,200 
		
	
	Current legislation does not allow married women the option to buy back years covered by a reduced rate election to increase their benefit entitlement.

National Insurance Contributions

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will list the categories of people who had to pay reduced rate class 1 national insurance contributions; and, for each category, whether entitlement to contributory benefits was gained;
	(2)  if he will list the categories of people given the option to pay reduced rate class 1 national insurance contributions (a) before and (b) after 5 April 1977; and, for each category, whether entitlement to contributory benefits was gained.

Dawn Primarolo: Married women and widows married before 5 April 1977 could elect, if the election was made before 12 May 1977, to pay reduced rate National Insurance contributions. The reduced rate contributions they elected to pay only covered them for Industrial Injuries Benefits. They did not build up entitlement to other contributory benefits in their own right. However, these women may receive a basic state pension based on their husband's contribution record when he retires and claims his state retirement pension.

Plastic Bag Levy

Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has carried out of the levy on plastic bags introduced in Ireland.

John Healey: The Government keeps under review developments and experience of relevant taxes in other countries. The Government currently has no plans to introduce a plastic bag tax.

Digital Hearing Aids

Chris Grayling: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason VAT is levied on digital hearing aids.

John Healey: There is no VAT on digital hearing aids supplied to patients by the NHS. The provision of a digital hearing aid by way of business involves two supplies for the purposes of VAT: hearing equipment, which is charged with VAT at the standard rate, and a dispensing service, which is exempt from VAT.
	Long-standing formal agreements with our European partners mean that we are unable to change the existing VAT treatment for hearing aids.

Afghanistan

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to reduce the levels of smuggling of heroin from Afghanistan.

John Healey: The UK is pursuing a number of initiatives to reduce the levels of smuggling of heroin from Afghanistan, ranging from building the expertise of Afghan counter-narcotics officers to gathering and sharing intelligence with law enforcement partners about all aspects of the trade along the smuggling routes.

Afghanistan

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with ministers concerning opium production in Afghanistan and its likely effect on the availability of heroin in Britain; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: Regular meetings are held at both Ministerial and official level to discuss a range of issues concerning Afghanistan, including opium production, poverty relief, reconstruction and security sector reform.

Estate Sales

Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what parts of the Customs and Excise estate have been sold, and to whom, since 1997;
	(2)  what parts of the Inland Revenue estate have been sold, and to whom, since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: The bulk of both Departments' properties was sold to Mapeley STEPS Ltd in April 2001 as part of a contract for the provision of serviced accommodation over a 20 year period. The number of properties sold to Mapeley STEPS Ltd by the Inland Revenue was 101 with a total area of approximately 387,000 square metres. The corresponding figures for Customs and Excise were 35 properties and an area of approximately 92,000 square metres.
	Other than the disposals in connection with the STEPS contract, no comprehensive central record of property disposals exists and one could only be reconstructed at disproportionate cost. But properties known to have been disposed of are:
	Inland Revenue
	Dundonald House, Bexhill on Sea sold to the Police Authority
	Stuart House, Edinburgh sold to G.A. Properties Ltd
	Montrose House, Glasgow sold to G.A. Properties Ltd
	Highland House, Manchester sold to London Regional (Manchester) Properties Ltd
	Holborn House, Stockport sold to London Regional (Manchester) Properties Ltd
	St. Johns House, Bootle sold to Bootle PFI solutions 1998 (2) Ltd
	Customs & Excise
	Portcullis House, Hull
	Custom House, Salcombe
	Custom House, Fowey
	Custom House, Stornoway

Estate Sales

Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what part of HM Treasury estate have been sold, and to whom, since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: None.

Online Tax Assessment

Simon Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list which (a) software and (b) hardware is not able to access the Inland Revenue's online assessment forms.

Dawn Primarolo: As to (a), the Inland Revenue only has available information relating to the software that can be used. Customers can either use the Inland Revenue's own software ''SA Online'' or software provided by a third party supplier. A list of approved commercial software is available on the Inland Revenue Website.
	The information sought under (b) is not available. The Inland Revenue is able only to advise what hardware is required to use the service. The service is compatible with the most popular hardware and software, and the Inland Revenue's requirements are in line with similar commercial products, such as Internet Banking.

Online Tax Assessment

Simon Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of online assessment users failed to send their information due to (a) technical incompatability or (b) website failure.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is not available.

Insurance

Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to act as an insurer of last resort in relation to employers' liability insurance and public liability insurance.

Ruth Kelly: None.

Personal Pensions Sales

Bill Tynan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many of the cases reviewed under the FSA Review of personal pensions sales have indicated a financial loss necessitating compensation; and of these, in how many cases the reviewing company has (a) recompensed that financial loss and (b) yet to recompense that financial loss.

Ruth Kelly: The FSA Review indicated financial loss in 1,099,907 cases. Of these 1,006,173 cases have been recompensed, leaving 93,734 yet to be recompensed.

Personal Pensions Sales

Bill Tynan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many cases were reviewed and how many cases remain to be reviewed under (a) the Financial Services Authority Review of Personal Pensions Sales and (b) the FSA Review of Free Standing Additional Voluntary Contribution Sales.

Ruth Kelly: The latest information from the FSA is as follows:
	
		
			 Number of Cases Personal Pensions Free Standing Additional Voluntary Contributions 
		
		
			 Reviewed 1,570,079 99,314 
			 To be reviewed 41,028 5,644

Pension Annuities

Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many respondents to the consultation document on annuities put forward the suggestion for a money back guarantee on the purchase of pension annuities; and in what way the views of these respondents were reflected in the analysis of the responses to the consultation.

Ruth Kelly: Out of a total of 601 responses, 29 included comments on the idea of a money back guarantee. The summary of responses published on 18 July gave a broad picture of the consultation feedback. The complete set of responses was placed in the Library on the same date.
	As indicated in the reply given on 18 July 2002 to the hon. Member for Bridgwater (Mr. Liddell-Grainger), Official Report, column 467W, any reforms to annuities will need to dovetail with simplification and other reforms being considered in the pensions Green Paper this autumn.

Income Tax

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the proportion of (a) total income tax and (b) all taxes paid by the top 10 per cent. of income tax payers by income for each year since 1980–81.

Dawn Primarolo: It would only be possible to provide a reliable answer at disproportionate cost. Some of the information is, however, available in table 2.4 of Inland Revenue Statistics which is available on Inland Revenue's website www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk. Estimates for some earlier years are also available in table 2.3 of the 1993 edition of Inland Revenue Statistics which is available in the Library of the House.

ECOFIN Council

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the outcome was of the ECOFIN Council held on 8 October; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting record; and if he will make a statement.

Gordon Brown: I attended the ECOFIN meeting on 8 October.
	The Presidency and Commission gave an oral progress report on negotiations with third countries on the draft EU Directive on Savings. It was decided that the Commission should continue negotiations on the basis of its current mandate.
	ECOFIN had an orientation discussion on the Presidency's proposed guidelines for an energy tax directive. The UK supported the Presidency's draft guidelines. ECOFIN will further consider the outstanding issues at its meeting on 5 November.
	On streamlining of economic reform processes and the review of the Employment Strategy, it was agreed that ECOFIN would have a full discussion in November, on the basis of a joint report by the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC) and Economic Policy Committee (EPC).
	Council held an orientation debate on the budgetary and financial aspects of enlargement ahead of the Brussels European Council on 24–25 October. Along with other Member States, the UK stressed the importance of enlargement taking place on a sustainable financial basis and the need for parallel progress on reform of the Common Agricultural Policy, including degressivity of direct payments.
	ECOFIN endorsed the Economic and Financial Committee's proposals on new arrangements for financial stability, supervision and integration. The proposals will now go for consultation with the European Parliament as well as industry and consumer organisations before adoption by ECOFIN in December.
	Council adopted conclusions on Macro-Financial Assistance and approved an updated Common understanding on economic issues for Russia.
	The Commission stated its intention to end the state aid exemption for aviation insurance from 31 October, and set out criteria for possible participation in a mutual insurance fund. The Presidency noted that any member state that wished to continue their state guarantee scheme beyond 31 October would have to apply for general state aid clearance in the normal way. The EFC will continue discussions on mutual insurance funds to inform future ECOFIN consideration.
	At the UK's request, the Commission was asked to produce clarification for EU Ambassadors in COREPER on the scope for an EDF (European Development Fund) contribution to financing the shortfall in the Highly Indebted Poor Countries initiative.
	No votes were taken at the meeting.

Mortality Rates

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the death rate is for (a) lung, (b) breast, (c) prostate, (d) ovarian and (e) leukaemia cancer patients within the NHS; and what the figures were for each year since 1997.

Ruth Kelly: The answer requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Gregory Barker, dated 22 October 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your question asking what the death rate is for (a) lung, (b) breast, (c) prostate, (d) ovarian and (e) leukaemia cancer patients within the NHS; and what the figures were for each year since 1997. I am replying in his absence. (75785)
	The information that is available on deaths from cancer is given in the attached table, and relates to all those occurring in England and Wales in each year. It is likely that the vast majority of these will have had some contact with the NHS during their treatment, but it is not possible to state which were NHS patients.
	
		Age-standardised death rates(1) per million: selected cancers, by sex England and Wales 1997–2000
		
			  Trachea, bronchus and lung (162) Breast* (174) Ovary and other uterine adnexa (183) Prostate (185) eukaemia (204–208) 
		
		
			 Calendar year(3) 
			 Males 
			 1997 649 — — 277 66 
			 1998 641 — — 274 66 
			 1999 609 — — 270 66 
			 2000 590 — — 257 66 
			 Females 
			 1997 285 336 115 — 43 
			 1998 291 327 117 — 40 
			 1999 289 318 112 — 44 
			 2000 285 310 110 — 39 
		
	
	(1) Directly age-standardised to the European standard population.
	(2) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes given in brackets in the table
	(3) Figures are for deaths occurring in each calendar year

Cm 5570

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when Her Majesty's Treasury published the correction note to Cm 5570; for what reason it was necessary to make changes to the original document; what action has been taken to avoid such errors in future; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Boateng: The note was published on 9 September 2002 to correct a number of typographical errors in the document. The Treasury makes every effort to ensure that published documents are fully accurate and will continue to do so. However, where minor errors are identified after publication, it is right that these are corrected publicly.

National Insurance

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of people using an incorrect national insurance number.

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue as part of its normal business checks that people are using the right National Insurance numbers. When an error has occurred, we seek to correct it and inform the individual. It is not possible, except at disproportionate cost, to estimate the number of people who use an incorrect number.

National Insurance

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many letters have been sent in the last five years to inform people that they have been using an incorrect national insurance number; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: It is not possible to establish the number of letters sent in the last five years about incorrect National Insurance numbers except at disproportionate cost.

CR74 Computer System

Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the estimated cost is of the CR74 computer system.

Dawn Primarolo: The Inland Revenue does not have an IT system called CR74. This is the internal name for a series of activities to enable Inland Revenue to manage its records better.

Biofuels

Boris Johnson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to increase the rebate on biofuels; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The Government's taxation plans are announced in the Chancellor's annual Budget statement.

VAT

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many businesses (a) registered for VAT and (b) de-registered for VAT there were per 10,000 resident adult population in (i) the UK, (ii) the North West and (iii) Blackpool in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

John Healey: Customs currently maintain this data on VAT registration and deregistration on a national basis.
	The numbers of businesses registered and deregistered for VAT per 10,000 resident adult population in the UK in each of the last five years were:
	
		
			 Year Ended 30 June Registered Deregistered 
		
		
			 1997 41 35 
			 1998 43 34 
			 1999 42 36 
			 2000 41 38 
			 2001 40 35

Travel Insurance

Robert Key: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the impact on the travel insurance industry of recent events in Bali.

Ruth Kelly: I am not aware of any changes to the position of UK travel insurers following the recent tragedy in Bali.

Equity Release Schemes

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action he proposes to protect retired people in respect of equity release schemes.

Ruth Kelly: The Treasury is giving the Financial Services Authority (FSA) responsibility for regulating mortgage business, including mortgage based equity release arrangements. In August, the FSA published CP 146 which sets out its approach to regulating mortgage sales including lifetime mortgages (the FSA's term for regulated equity release mortgages). It is expected that regulation of lifetime and other mortgages will come into force in October 2004.

Departmental Websites

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the website links associated with his Department, including sites now dormant or closed, and indicating whether they are live, dormant or closed; what the start up costs were for each site listed; what the operating costs were in each year since start up for each site; which company hosted each site; what assessment takes place for each site; which company does the assessment; if he will place the assessment reports in the Library; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: As well as the main Treasury web site (www.hm-treasury.gov.uk), the Treasury is also responsible for the following sites:
	
		
			 Site name Start up costs 
		
		
			 www.addingitup.gov.uk #23,000 
			 www.euro.gov.uk #9,602 
			 The Government Economic Service's recruitment site (www.ges.gov.uk) #4,310 
			 Invest to Save web site (www.isb.gov.uk) #13,098 
			 Whole of Government accounts site (www.wga.gov.uk) #500 
			 The Commonwealth Finance Ministers Site (www.cfmm2002.org) #4,175 
		
	
	Figures are exclusive of VAT unless otherwise
	indicated.
	For information on the start up costs of the recently relaunched main Treasury site, I refer the Hon member to the reply I gave to the member for Arundel & South Downs (Mr. Howard Flight), 19 December 2001, Official Report, column 321W.
	The Treasury was the first Government Department to have a web site and over the last eight years has developed and maintained a series of web sites. Complete start up and running costs for all Treasury related sites launched since 1994, including dormant and closed ones, could not be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.
	The Treasury's websites are hosted by commercial companies whose contracts are subject to regular review. Anticipated costs on hosting services over the next twelve months will be approximately #40,000 with another #50,000 spent on technical management and support. Information relating to the individual companies hosting the site could not be disclosed under Exemption 7 (Effective Management and Operation of the Public Services) of the Code of Conduct on Access to Government Information. The Treasury has not, to date, commissioned external companies to provide reports on its web sites.

Penrose Inquiry

James Clappison: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to receive the report from Lord Penrose's inquiry into Equitable Life.

Ruth Kelly: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Colchester (Mr. Russell) on 15 October, Official Report, column 608W.

Focus Group Research

Graham Allen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what use he and his Department has made of focus group research since June 2001; if he will identify for each research project the topics covered, the person or organisation carrying out the research, and the total cost; and if he will publish the research on his Department's website.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Suicides

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average age-standardised mortality rate from suicide per 100,000 working-age adults was in (a) 1998, (b) 1999 and (c) 2000.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Evan Harris, dated 22 October 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your question asking what the average European age-standardised mortality rate from suicide per 100,000 working adults was in (a) 1998, (b) 1999 and (c) 2000. I am replying in his absence. (75636)
	The figures requested are given in the table below. Figures for men and women are shown separately, as different age groups are used to classify working age depending on sex.
	
		Age-standardised(4) mortality rate for suicide and injury undetermined whether accidentally or purposely inflicted(5) for adults of working age(6) by sex in England and Wales, 1998 to 2000
		
			  rate per 100,000 
			 Calendar year(7) Men Women 
		
		
			 1998 20.8 5.5 
			 1999 20.4 5.7 
			 2000 18.8 5.8 
		
	
	Sources:
	(4) Directly age-standardised to the European standard population.
	(5) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes E950-E959 and E980-E989 excluding E988.8.
	(6) Adults of working age were classified as men aged between 16 and 64 and women aged between 16 and 59.
	(7) Figures are for deaths occurring in each calendar year

Prostate Cancer

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of state for Health, when figures for the incidence of prostrate cancer in the UK as whole will be available.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Gregory Barker, dated 22 October 2002
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question concerning when figures for the incidence of prostate cancer in the UK as a whole will be available. (75806)
	The numbers of newly diagnosed cases and directly age standardised rates for prostate cancer in the United Kingdom and its constituent countries for 1998 are available and are given in the table below.
	Figures for the United Kingdom for 1999 are expected to be available early in 2003.
	
		Number of newly diagnosed cases and directly age standardised* registration rates per 100,000 males for prostate  cancer by country in the United Kingdom, 1998
		
			  Number Rate 
		
		
			 United Kingdom 22916 67.4 
			 England 19335 67.6 
			 Wales 1262 68.1 
			 Scotland 1839 66.4 
			 N Ireland 480 61.2 
		
	
	Notes:
	* Using the European Standard Population
	  International Classification of Disease Tenth Revision Code C61

HOME DEPARTMENT

Sex Offenders

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many persons on the Sex Offenders Register are registered at addresses in Southampton, Portsmouth and Hampshire, and on the Isle of Wight;
	(2)  how many persons on the Sex Offenders Register, registered at addresses on the Isle of Wight, were (a) never convicted of a sex offence and (b) convicted of a sex offence (i) within the last two years, (ii) 3–5 years ago, (iii) 6–10 years ago, (iv) 11–20 years ago and (v) more than 20 years ago;
	(3)  how many persons on the Sex Offenders Register, registered at addresses on the Isle of Wight, were (a) never imprisoned as a result of a sex offence and (b) released from imprisonment for a sex offence (i) within the last two years, (ii) 3–5 years ago, (iii) 6–10 years ago, (iv) 11–20 years ago and (v) more than 20 years ago;
	(4)  what offences have been committed in the last 10 years by those persons on the Sex Offenders Register who are registered at addresses on the Isle of Wight.

Hilary Benn: holding answer 19 December 2001
	The Sex Offenders Act 1997 requires offenders cautioned for, convicted of, or found not guilty by reason of insanity of an offence specified in Schedule One to the Act since the date of its implementation to notify their local police of their names, addresses, dates of birth and intentions to travel abroad for eight days or longer. There is, however, no register of sex offenders, as such; nor are sex offenders subject to the requirements of the Sex Offenders Act separately identified as such in criminal statistics.
	The Home Office has issued guidance to chief officers of police and probation in respect of their statutory duty under section 67 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 to make arrangements for the assessment and management of the risk posed by dangerous offenders. The guidance requires information about the number of registered sex offenders in each police area to be published. A copy of the relevant annual report, which reveals there are 713 registered sex offenders in Hampshire, translating to a rate of 40 per one hundred thousand of the population can be obtained from the Hampshire police or Probation Services. Detailed Information requested is not available centrally.

Traffic Policing

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if he will list the UK police forces which have a dedicated traffic enforcement division, how many officers there were in the divisions; and what these figures were as a percentage of the force strength;
	(2)  if he will list the UK police forces which have disbanded their dedicated traffic divisions in the last 10 years;
	(3)  what the budget for traffic enforcement was in each police force for the last 10 years; and what each figure was expressed as a percentage of the force budget.

John Denham: The two tables give the information readily available. Table 1 sets out for each police force in England and Wales in 2001–02 the number of officers in traffic posts (''traffic police''). Traffic police are defined as ''staff who are predominantly employed on motorcycles or in patrol vehicles for the policing of traffic and motorway related duties''. The definition does not include accident investigation, vehicle examination or radar duties. No records are kept centrally of which forces organise their traffic posts into dedicated traffic enforcement divisions or which forces have disbanded dedicated traffic enforcement divisions.
	Table 2 sets out for each force in England and Wales the net cost of traffic and road safety for the past two years, showing each force's spend on these as a proportion of the force budget. The table shows that, over the two-year period, spend on traffic and road safety increased as a proportion of the force budget in a significant number of forces.
	A thematic inspection report on road policing by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, published in 1998, identified an intelligence-led model for this activity, integrating traffic policing with other core activities and making more effective use of police resources. As forces increasingly adopt this approach, the number of dedicated traffic officers may reduce, but this does not necessarily reflect a lower level of enforcement. The increased use of cameras and other technology can allow a reduction in traffic officers whilst maintaining traffic targets/ enforcement levels. It also allows traffic officers to be appropriately targeted elsewhere. Reductions in the numbers of traffic officers, taken by themselves, can therefore be misleading.
	
		Table 1: Numbers of traffic police in 2001–02
		
			  No of Traffic Police Total Strength Percentage of Force Strength 
		
		
			 Avon and Somerset 214 3,096 6.9 
			 Bedfordshire 69 1,069 6.5 
			 Cambridgeshire 78 1,362 5.7 
			 Cheshire 194 2,059 9.4 
			 City of London 25 764 3.3 
			 Cleveland 67 1,461 4.6 
			 Cumbria 108 1,100 9.8 
			 Derbyshire 140 1,848 7.6 
			 Devon and Cornwall 187 3,053 6.1 
			 Dorset 81 1,381 5.9 
			 Durham 113 1,614 7.0 
			 Dyfed-Powys 75 1,132 6.6 
			 Essex 254 2,946 8.6 
			 Gloucestershire 64 1,183 5.4 
			 Greater Manchester 421 7,217 5.8 
			 Gwent 87 1,333 6.5 
			 Hampshire 240 3,480 6.9 
			 Hertfordshire 149 1,825 8.2 
			 Humberside 136 2,058 6.6 
			 Kent 104 3,355 3.1 
			 Lancashire 220 3,304 6.7 
			 Leicestershire 86 2,100 4.1 
			 Lincolnshire 98 1,198 8.2 
			 Merseyside 126 4,125 3.1 
			 Metropolitan Police 602 26,223 2.3 
			 Norfolk 114 1,468 7.8 
			 Northamptonshire 61 1,214 5.0 
			 Northumbria 178 3,929 4.5 
			 North Wales 152 1,506 10.1 
			 North Yorkshire 140 1,417 9.9 
			 Nottinghamshire 111 2,330 4.8 
			 South Wales 244 3,222 7.6 
			 South Yorkshire 208 3,199 6.5 
			 Staffordshire 34 2,133 1.6 
			 Suffolk 68 1,203 5.7 
			 Surrey 110 1,992 5.5 
			 Sussex 174 2,893 6.0 
			 Thames Valley 247 3,762 6.6 
			 Warwickshire 95 969 9.8 
			 West Mercia 325 2,018 16.1 
			 West Midlands 385 7,681 5.0 
			 West Yorkshire 336 4,889 6.9 
			 Wiltshire 88 1,157 7.6 
		
	
	
		Table 2: Traffic and road safety net costs 2000–01 TO 2001–02 (only 2 years available)
		
			  Net cost of traffic & road safety Spend as proportion of net budget requirement Net cost of traffic & road safety Spend as proportion of net budget requirement 
			  2000–01 2000–01 2001–02 2001–02 
		
		
			 Avon & Somerset #18,620,000 10.25% #19,772,000 10.42% 
			 Bedfordshire #4,377,000 6.56% #4,646,000 6.57% 
			 Cambridgeshire #6,173,000 7.76% #8,054,000 9.57% 
			 Cheshire #5,535,000 4.81% #5,420,000 4.45% 
			 City Of London #2,364,000 4.08% #2,483,000 4.16% 
			 Cleveland #3,949,000 4.46% #4,073,000 4.49% 
			 Cumbria #6,159,000 9.14% #4,590,000 6.50% 
			 Derbyshire #12,632,000 11.37% #12,581,000 10.76% 
			 Devon & Cornwall N/A N/A N/A N/A 
			 Dorset #4,330,000 5.34% #4,415,000 5.22% 
			 Durham #4,946,000 5.89% #5,503,000 6.28% 
			 Dyfed-Powys #2,176,000 3.69% #3,147,000 5.00% 
			 Essex #8,479,000 4.63% #9,312,000 4.78% 
			 Gloucestershire #4,595,000 6.70% #4,592,000 6.36% 
			 Greater Manchester #8,545,000 2.17% #23,590,000 5.74% 
			 Gwent #4,637,000 6.09% #4,717,000 5.85% 
			 Hampshire #20,241,000 9.89% #21,443,000 9.92% 
			 Hertfordshire #12,424,000 10.02% #10,679,000 8.25% 
			 Humberside #8,170,000 6.87% #10,700,000 8.35% 
			 Kent #5,701,000 2.95% #5,638,000 2.73% 
			 Lancashire #16,518,000 8.69% #17,388,000 8.73% 
			 Leicestershire #5,420,000 4.92% N/A N/A 
			 Lincolnshire #4,200,000 5.79% N/A N/A 
			 Merseyside #13,772,000 5.43% #16,317,000 6.16% 
			 Metropolitan Police N/A N/A N/A N/A 
			 Norfolk N/A N/A #6,081,000 6.18% 
			 North Wales Police #8,583,000 10.22% #6,427,000 7.18% 
			 North Yorkshire #5,797,000 7.03% #5,896,000 6.87% 
			 Northamptonshire #3,534,000 4.79% #4,040,000 5.16% 
			 Northumbria N/A N/A N/A N/A 
			 Nottinghamshire #2,227,000 1.66% #7,431,000 5.30% 
			 South Wales #11,425,000 6.38% #13,697,000 7.25% 
			 South Yorkshire N/A N/A N/A N/A 
			 Staffordshire #8,755,000 6.89% N/A N/A 
			 Suffolk #4,005,000 5.46% #4,094,000 5.27% 
			 Surrey #11,531,000 9.12% #10,702,000 8.74% 
			 Sussex #9,522,000 5.46% #9,247,000 5.03% 
			 Thames Valley #18,819,000 7.90% #18,981,000 7.53% 
			 Warwickshire #5,221,000 8.84% #5,502,000 8.82% 
			 West Mercia #13,910,000 11.07% #15,861,000 11.91% 
			 West Midlands #15,886,000 4.02% #21,722,000 5.29% 
			 West Yorkshire #17,936,000 5.95% N/A N/A 
			 Wiltshire #4,769,000 6.63% #4,930,000 6.52% 
			  
			 All England And Wales 391,251,000 5.03% #461,601,000 5.65% 
		
	
	Source:
	Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy Police statistics 2000–01 Actuals and 2001–02 Estimates. Total cost is not available separately for five forces, but overall figure reflects sum for all forces.
	Traffic and road safety includes traffic units; vehicle based armed response units; motorway patrol units; accident investigation units; road safety officers and speed management units.

Roadside Checks

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many roadside checks undertaken by the Vehicle Inspectorate have had to be cancelled over the last 12 months owing to lack of police resources, broken down by police force.

John Denham: The table gives details for each force area in England and Wales of the number of roadside checks undertaken, total Vehicle Inspectorate (VI) staff hours worked, hours lost by the VI owing to the lack of a police officer, and total police hours worked. Hours lost by the VI cover circumstances such as where police officers were called away at the time of the check to deal with local emergencies or where officers did not attend as arranged. Numbers of roadside checks where the police gave more than 24 hours' notice of cancellation or where a force could not cover the desired number of checks because a senior police officer decided that the resources needed to go elsewhere are not recorded centrally.
	Much of the increasing demand on the police is generated by the current provision that only an officer in uniform can stop vehicles for such purposes as roadworthiness and emissions tests. The police are not always in a position to supply officers to assist the VI in this way, and the Government recognise that police involvement in VI roadside checks may not be seen as the most effective use of police resources. Provisions in the Police Reform Act 2002 enable Community Support Officers and accredited persons to be given the power to stop and direct vehicles for specific purposes. These include for tests by the VI of vehicles' roadworthiness and compliance with construction and use regulations. The Act also removes the present restriction on traffic wardens' powers to stop, so that they can also undertake such functions. These measures will benefit the VI by enabling them to have a higher level of guaranteed service.
	
		
			 Area Police force No.of checks Total VI staff hrs VI lost hrs Total police hrs 
		
		
			 4 Cumbria 119 2581.5 0 1032 
			 4 Lancashire 118 2334 9.5 991.5 
			 5 Derbyshire 146 3545 18 860 
			 5 Greater Manchester 181 4698 24.5 1075.5 
			 5 Cheshire 75 1993 2.5 440.5 
			 6 Cheshire 72 2001 20 479 
			 6 Mersey Tunnel 43 716.5 10.5 199.5 
			 6 Merseyside 84 2821 71 522 
			 6 North Wales 54 1430.5 7.5 358 
			 7 Staffs 57 1133 47.25 266.75 
			 7 West Mercia 10 140 13 24.25 
			 7 West Mids 19 267.5 0 112.75 
			 7 CPMG 47 1128 59.33 194.5 
			 8 Warwickshire 66 1320 0 500 
			 8 West Mercia 72 1575 11 1151 
			 8 West Mids 73 1389 22.5 1141 
			 9 Dyfed 84 1055 27 654 
			 9 Gwent 51 1295.5 23.5 658 
			 9 South Wales 84 715.25 7.75 607.5 
			 10 Avon & Somerset 141 2269 8 1260 
			 10 Gloucester 85 928 0 546 
			 10 Wiltshire 92 1175 14 870 
			 11 Devon & Cornwall 168 3656 160.5 1812 
			 11 Dorset 82 1300.5 46.5 1003.5 
			 11 Avon & Somerset 36 833.25 17.5 509.75 
			 11 British Transport 0 0 0 0 
			 12 Hants 22 416.9 11 323 
			 12 Thames Valley 44 742.75 57.5 440.25 
			 12 Wiltshire 2 33 0 17 
			 13 Metropolitan 16 378.5 46 76 
			 13 Surrey 110 2815 37 647.55 
			 13 Sussex 105 1882.1 21 604.17 
			 14 Kent 166 3327.4 64.25 900.05 
			 14 Sussex 69 1265.4 48.5 323.45 
			 15 British Transport 4 55 60 20 
			 15 Heathrow 14 275 2 65 
			 15 Royal Parks 0 0 0 0 
			 15 Metropolitan 165 3655 93.75 779.5 
			 15 City of London 14 155 0 70 
			 16 Metropolitan 0 0 0 0 
			 16 Essex 65 1928.85 10.5 313.75 
			 16 Herts 58 1449.5 120.25 742.5 
			 17 Norfolk 74 1819 130.5 448.5 
			 17 Suffolk 20 380.5 0 126 
			 17 Lincs 0 0 0 0 
			 18 Bedfordshire 7 159 4 33.5 
			 18 Northants 19 504.5 69 154 
			 18 Thames Valley 36 1177.75 131.5 223.25 
			 18 Leicestershire 12 274.5 3 157.5 
			 19 Cambridge 49 677.5 26.5 459.5 
			 19 Lincs 142 2393.5 24.67 1480 
			 20 Notts 81 2566 4 801.5 
			 20 S Yorks 107 2552.5 12 846.5 
			 20 W Yorks 0 0 0 0 
			 21 Humberside 44 1330.5 54.17 239 
			 22 N Yorks 72 1080.5 16.83 458.75 
			 22 W Yorks 68 1431.5 35 745 
			 23 Cleveland 81 1184 0 482 
			 23 Northumbria 121 1879 2.5 704 
			 23 N Yorks 73 1772 2 444 
			 23 Durham 88 1170 30 516 
			   
			  Total 4007 83032.65 1783.75 30891.22

Street Crime

Mr. Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the level of street crime changed in (a) Harrow and (b) London between January and the end of August.

John Denham: The Home Office does not routinely publish monthly crime figures. Statistics collected by the Home Office and published on 14 October as part of the Street Crime Initiative show that street crime offences in the Metropolitan Police Area fell from 6,774 offences in the four weeks ending 30 January to 4,576 offences in the four weeks ending 28 August. This represents a reduction of 32 per cent. The definition of street crime is all robbery offences (commercial and personal) and snatch thefts.
	The information on street crime figures at borough level is not published by the Home Office.

Illegal Parking

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance he has given, and what legislation is in place, regarding illegal parking.

Bob Ainsworth: Parking offences are contained in a number of Acts including the Highways Act 1980, the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988. Guidance about illegal parking is given in the Highway Code.
	Enforcement of criminal parking offences is an operational matter for the police. The Road Traffic Act 1991 provided for the decriminalisation of most non-endorsable on-street parking offences and their enforcement by local authorities. Normally, where there is an infringement a local authority parking attendant would issue a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) to the transgressor. It is a matter for the local authority to ensure parking attendants are doing their jobs properly. Motorists can appeal to an independent parking adjudicator if they wish to dispute the issue of a PCN.

Terrorism

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the co-ordination between organisations in response to any terrorist attack.

David Blunkett: Since the attacks of 11 September, the Government has conducted a wide ranging review of the United Kingdom counter terrorist procedures and infrastructure, including physical and legislative measures to disrupt, deter and prevent terrorist activity. The Civil Contingencies Committee, which I chair, has led the review working systematically through all government departments, the emergency services, local authorities and the Devolved Administrations. In this way we are in a position to get advice on issues that require central leadership or facilitation. The arrangements are revised and tested through exercises to encourage continual improvement of our response arrangements.
	The Government's progress report ''The United Kingdom and the Campaign against International Terrorism'' published on 9 September, and placed in the Library, provides a summary of action taken to strengthen counter-terrorism measures within the United Kingdom.
	An external assessment by the House of Commons Defence Committee, detailed in their sixth report of session 2001–02 ''Defence and Security in the United Kingdom'', made further recommendations to which the Government are responding and which will help guide further work.
	To further enhance the capacity at the centre of Government to co-ordinate security, intelligence and consequence management matters and deal with risks and major emergencies should they arise, Sir David Omand KCB was appointed as Security and Intelligence Co-ordinator and Permanent Secretary to the Cabinet Office in June this year.
	Further information on the preparedness of the United Kingdom to respond to a major terrorist attack can be found on the website maintained by the Civil Contingencies Secretariat (CCS) at: http://www.ukresilience.infor/home.htm.

Prisons

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received regarding capacity in prisons; and what plans he has to increase prison capacity.

Hilary Benn: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State receives representations on a regular basis regarding capacity in prisons. These come from a wide variety of individuals and organisations.
	Her Majesty's Prison Service has already started an emergency building programme to increase capacity by 2,320 places by March 2003. The programme includes building modular temporary units and ready to use units at existing prisons and the deferment of some wing refurbishment schemes. The first of these schemes is already in operation. The Home Secretary also announced on 14 October that an additional #60 million would be provided to the Prison Service in 2003–04 to build further places to open next year. Further additional accommodation will be delivered during 2002 and 2004 as part of the expansion programmes at Her Majesty's Prison Hull and Birmingham.

Airlines (Data Collection)

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consultation there has been on the revised rules under Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 (Information) Order 2002; and what estimate he has made of (a) the additional time it will take for airlines to collect the data from passengers and (b) the potential delays caused by this procedure.

David Blunkett: Following the issue of a consultation document in March this year, two rounds of consultation meetings between Home Officials and representatives of the air and sea industries took place between April and July and in August. A third round is scheduled to run from 22 October to 14 November.
	In addition, I met representatives of the industries on 11 July and my hon. Friend the Minister of State (Beverley Hughes) met them on 16 October, keeping our commitment to ensure that representatives of the industry have access to Ministers.
	These meetings have considered all the issues relevant to implementation, including how best to keep potential costs and delays to a minimum, while ensuring we are doing everything possible to disrupt and deter potential terrorists.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 24 June from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, with regard to Amir Chaudhry;
	(2)  when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 24 June from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Amir Chaudhry.

David Blunkett: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 18 October 2002.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 5 August from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. Amanat Vilah.

David Blunkett: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 18 October 2002.

Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the hon. Member for West Worcestershire will receive answers to his letters of 28 August and 24 June about Ms Jackie Neilson.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 21 October 2002
	A reply to the hon. Member's letters of 24 June and 28 August is currently being prepared. I apologise for the considerable delay in responding to the issues he has raised; however, I can confirm that the constituent on whose behalf he contacted me was informed of the outcome of her application for a work permit on 14 August.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has considered the prospect of floating coastal accommodation centres for asylum seekers, and the cost and other implications thereof; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Site searching has continued as we said it would when we announced our shortlist for Accommodation Centre sites on 14 May. We have not ruled out the possibility of using floating accommodation centres for asylum seekers.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress is being made to establish a system enabling the Home Office to identify the whereabouts of every asylum seeker during the period from application to final determination.

Beverley Hughes: We are making improvements in contact management as detailed in the current Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Bill. This states that asylum seekers in the proposed Accommodation Centres may be required to report daily within the Centre. We will seek to maintain contact with those asylum seekers who are dispersed. Those who do not require the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) accommodation will also be required to report. During the induction process asylum seekers will be informed of their obligations to provide up to date address details and to report as required. Provision of support will be conditional on complying with these requirements.
	The Immigration Service will manage the contact process actively. There are eight designated reporting centres which have been established throughout the country to assist in managing these reporting regimes. Contact management will be further enhanced by the use of a mobile reporting centre, by immigration staff using specified police stations for reporting and by visiting asylum seekers at their accommodation.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the latest estimated cost is of (a) building and (b) staffing the proposed pilot accommodation centres for asylum seekers.

Beverley Hughes: I refer the hon. Member to the reply my hon. Friend the member for Wallasey (Angela Eagle) gave to the hon. Member for Mid Worcestershire (Peter Luff) on 8 March 2002, Official Report, column 595W.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how may applications for asylum from Iraq were received in the first two quarters of 2002; how many were rejected; how many are subject to appeal; and how many removals have taken place.

Beverley Hughes: The table shows the number of applications received in the United Kingdom, excluding dependants, and initial decisions of Iraqi nationals for the first two quarters of 2002.
	
		
			  Applications Received Total Initial Decisions Recognised as a refugee and granted asylum Not recognised as a refugee but granted exceptional leave Refusals 
		
		
			 Quarter 1 2002 2,840 2,535 220 1,430 890 
			 Quarter 2 2002 3,420 2,545 195 1,775 575 
		
	
	Notes:
	(8) Figures rounded to the nearest five.
	(9) Decision figures do not necessarily relate to applications received in the same period.
	Provisional figures
	Data on initial decisions are independent of applications data, and do not all necessarily relate to applications lodged in the same period. There are no data available on asylum appeals lodged by nationality. The requested information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case records. In the first quarter (January to March) of 2002, an estimated 35 Iraqi principal asylum applicants were removed. This includes persons departing ''voluntarily'' after enforcement action had been initiated against them and persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International organisation for migration (IOM), and excludes dependants. Data on removals by nationality in the second quarter of 2002 are not yet available. This information will be published on 29 November on the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration 1.html.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he anticipates that the first pilot accommodation centre for asylum seekers will become operational.

Beverley Hughes: I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Mid Worcestershire (Mr. Luff) of 18 June, Official Report, column 278W.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers are being held in prison service accommodation; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The latest available information on the number of persons detained solely under Immigration Act powers relates to 29 June 2002. As at that date, 105 persons (to the nearest five) were being detained in Prison Service accommodation who are recorded as having claimed asylum at some stage.
	The routine use of Prison Service accommodation for immigration detainees ended at the beginning of this year, but it remains necessary to hold small numbers of detainees in prison for reasons of control and security. The figure of 105 may also include individuals who are held pending deportation on completion of custodial sentences.
	Information on Immigration Act detainees as at 28 September 2002 will be published on 29 November 2002 on the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what efforts he has made to renegotiate the bilateral agreement with France relating to the return of illegal entrants to France; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: A bilateral ''Gentleman's Agreement'' between the UK and France operated in relation to asylum seekers from 1995 to 1997 and is still in force in relation to other illegal entrants. The first clause of that agreement stated that its application to asylum seekers would be superseded by the Dublin Convention when that came into force.
	We believe the most important thing is to stop the flow of clandestine immigrants from France to the UK in the first place. My right hon. Friend, the Home Secretary has developed a very constructive working relationship with his French counterpart, Mr. Sarkozy, and we are putting in place a broad range of measures which will drive this flow down. These include a commitment to closing the Sangatte centre, and tougher immigration controls and security measures.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will estimate the number of failed asylum seekers in the UK.

Beverley Hughes: The information requested is unavailable, partly because it is not possible to determine the number of unsuccessful asylum seekers who leave the United Kingdom voluntarily without informing the Immigration Service of their departure.
	Information on asylum applications, decisions, appeals and removals is published regularly on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate web site at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Asylum Seekers

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of failed asylum seekers who were removed from the UK in the last 12 months were (a) in detention prior to removal and (b) at large prior to removal.

Beverley Hughes: The number of asylum seekers removed in the 12 months ending June 2002 is given in the table. More recent information is not yet available. Information on how many of these persons were in detention or at large prior to removal could be obtained only by examining individual case files at disproportionate cost.
	Asylum seekers removed
	
		
			  Principal applicants removed Dependants removed Total asylum seekers removed 
		
		
			 July 2001 to June 
			 2002 
			  9,890 2,030 11,920 
		
	
	Notes:
	Provisional data, rounded to the nearest five.
	(10) Includes persons departing ''voluntarily'' after enforcement action had been initiated against them and persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration.
	Information on the number of asylum seekers removed in the third quarter (July to September) of 2002 will be published on 29 November on the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Asylum Seekers

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what opportunities are available to those claiming asylum to change (a) caseworkers and (b) counsel allocated to them.

Beverley Hughes: It is open to applicants to change their representatives or counsel at any time, as they are engaged by the applicant and not allocated by the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND). IND caseworkers are allocated according to the needs of the business, and it would not be open to the applicant to request a change, save in the most exceptional circumstances.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Asylum Seekers

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assistance is afforded to asylum seekers to prepare their cases when they are unfamiliar with the English language; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Asylum applicants are provided with help in a language that they understand at all stages of the asylum process. Interpreters are available free of charge for all dealings with the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND).
	When an asylum application is made at a port or in country at a Screening Unit, an interpreter will be provided to help the applicant through the screening process. Where an applicant is given a Statement of Evidence Form (SEF) to complete they are provided with explanatory notes both in English and one of 33 languages. The explanatory notes set out what is expected of the applicant and the possible consequences should they fail to comply with our requests. An interpreter will be provided for any substantive interview conducted with the applicant. The applicant will previously have been asked on the SEF or during the screening process to give details of the language and dialect in which they would prefer to be interviewed.
	If an applicant is to be sent to the Oakington Reception Centre they will be given a leaflet, translated into 29 languages, which explains how their application will be considered. Interpreters are provided on site.
	Applicants who are referred to an Induction Centre receive various briefings in a language that they understand about the asylum process and how to claim support and accommodation.
	All the information supplied to the applicants includes details of how to find a representative to help with the application and details of organisations that provide assistance free of charge.
	If an asylum applicant receives a negative decision and chooses to appeal against that decision, they will be provided with an interpreter at any appeal hearing.

Asylum Seekers

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons have been forceably removed from the UK in (a) August, (b) September and (c) October.

Beverley Hughes: The latest available statistics on removals relate to 2001. These show that 48,155 persons (rounded to five) were removed from the United Kingdom under Immigration Act powers. This includes persons departing ''voluntary'' after being refused entry or after enforcement action had been initiated against them but excludes persons departing under the Assisted Voluntary Returns Programme run by the International Organisation for Migration.
	I regret that data for the months requested are not currently available.

Asylum Seekers

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of asylum seekers making in-country applications have applied having been in the country (a) less than one month, (b) from one to three months, (c) from three to six months, (d) from six months to one year and (e) more than one year in the last three years.

Beverley Hughes: I regret that the information is not available.
	Of the 20,400 applications lodged by principal applicants in the second quarter of 2002, 13,850 (68 per cent.) were lodged in-country. However, it is not possible to determine in what year these applicants first entered the United Kingdom, or whether they are currently living in the United Kingdom.
	Information on asylum applications is published regularly on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.

Asylum Accommodation Centres

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to submit a planning notification to Wychavon District Council in relation to the proposed asylum accommodation centre at Throckmorton.

Beverley Hughes: We are liaising closely with Wychavon District Council. A planning notification will be submitted in due course.

Asylum Accommodation Centres

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made since June 2002 in the determination of the suitability of RAF Turnhouse for an asylum seeker accommodation centre.

Beverley Hughes: Those sites still under consideration, including RAF Turnhouse, are being evaluated under a wide range of criteria. We will reach a decision as soon as possible on the suitability of RAF Turnhouse. However, immediate priority is being given to the three sites for which it has been decided to submit planning notifications.

Asylum Accommodation Centres

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what impact the ''Future Development of Air Transport'' consultation document has had on the consideration of RAF Turnhouse as an asylum seeker accommodation centre;
	(2)  what response his Department has made to the Department of Transport's ''Future Development of Air Transport'' consultation document regarding the options to expand Edinburgh Airport on land being considered for an asylum seeker accommodation centre.

Beverley Hughes: The Home Office and Department of Transport are aware of each others plans and are discussing the implications. We announced on May 14 that further work was required on the Edinburgh site before a decision could be taken on whether to submit a planning notification. An announcement will be made about our intentions in due course.

Clandestine Immigrants

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if he has discussed with his French counterpart the proposal of placing British officials in French cross-channel ports to assist in detecting clandestine immigrants coming to the UK via France; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when he last met his French counterpart to discuss improving the situation concerning clandestine immigrants coming to the UK via Cherbourg, St. Malo, Caen and Le Havre; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary last met his French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy, on 26 September in Calais. Their discussions of measures to counter clandestine migration have concentrated for the most part on the Channel Tunnel and the port of Calais. However, the two Governments recognise that as the security of these two routes is tightened, clandestine illegal entrants may try to use other ports. On 26 September the two Ministers therefore discussed possibilities for extending UK Immigration Service presence to other French ports, as well as for posting of French officers to UK ports.

Political Asylum

John Wilkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion in percentage terms of applications for political asylum in the United Kingdom have met the criteria established in the Geneva Convention on refugees in the last five years.

Beverley Hughes: An estimated 19 per cent. of applications received in 2001 were granted refugee status, i.e. were successful in their application to be granted refugee status under the 1951 UN Convention. It is estimated that a further 23 per cent. were granted Exceptional Leave to Remain (ELR). These estimates include the outcomes of reconsidered cases and outcomes of appeals at the Immigration Appellate Authority. Of applications received in 2000, an estimated 19 per cent. were granted refugee status and a further 14 per cent. were granted ELR.
	This analysis is unavailable for other periods. Tables 1 and 2, show initial decisions and adjudicator appeals made in the last five years. However, the initial decisions made in each period do not all necessarily relate to the applications lodged in the same period, and similarly the appeals determined do not all necessarily relate to initial decisions made in that period. These data exclude the outcomes of any reconsidered cases.
	
		Table 1: Initial asylum decisions in the United Kingdom (11),(12), 1997 to 2001
		
			  Total Initial Decisions(13) Cases considered under normal procedures(14) Number of principal applicants Backlog clearance exercise(15) 
			   Total Granted asylum Granted ELR Refused Total Granted asylum or ELR Refused under backlog 
			% % %  % % 
		
		
			 1997 36,045 36,045 11 9 80 — — — 
			 1998 31,570 31,570 17 12 71 — — — 
			 1999 33,720 21,305 36 12 52 12,415 90 10 
			 2000 109,205 97,545 11 12 78 11,660 89 11 
			 2001 119.015 119.015 9 17 74 — — — 
		
	
	Notes:
	(11) Figures rounded to the nearest 5, with * = 1 or 2.
	(12) Decision figures do not necessarily relate to applications received in the same period.
	(13) Information is of initial decisions, excluding the outcome of appeals or other subsequent decisions.
	(14) Cases considered under normal procedures may include some cases decided under the backlog criteria.
	(15) Cases decided under measures aimed at reducing the pre 1996 asylum application backlog.
	(16) Includes some cases where the application has been refused on substantive grounds.
	Figures for 2001 are provisional and subject to change.
	
		Table 2: Outcome of Asylum Appeals determined by adjudicators of the Immigration Appellate Authority, 1997–2001(17),(18) -- Number of principal appellants
		
			  Total determined Allowed Dismissed Withdrawn 
			   % % % 
		
		
			 1997 21,090 6 86 8 
			 1998 25,320 9 84 7 
			 1999 19,460 27 57 16 
			 2000 19,395 17 80 2 
			 2001 43,415 19 79 2 
		
	
	Notes:
	(17) Figures (other than percentages) rounded to the nearest 5.
	(18) Appeals figures do not necessarily relate to initial decisions made in the same period.
	Figures for 2001 are provisional and subject to change.
	Information on asylum applications, initial decisions and appeals is published regularly on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate web site at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration 1.html.

Political Asylum

John Wilkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of appeals lodged in the United Kingdom against the refusal of an application for political asylum have been upheld in the last five years.

Beverley Hughes: The available information is given in the table.
	Figures include appeals against grants of exceptional leave to enter and remain. Appeals at different tiers (Immigration Appellate Authority and the Immigration Appeals Tribunal) do not necessarily relate to one another. The figures exclude subsequent appeals (court of appeal, judicial review and the House of Lords). When an asylum claim is certified under schedule 4 of the 1999 Act and the adjudicator agrees the certificate, there is no right to apply to the Tribunal for permission to appeal further. Only a minority of applications for leave to appeal to the Tribunal are granted.
	Information on asylum appeals is published quarterly. The next publication will be available from 29 November 2002 on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate web site at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration 1.html.
	
		Appeals on Asylum Cases Determined by adjudicators of the IAA and outcomes, 1997–2001(19)
		
			  Asylum Appeals Determined by the IAA(20) Number Allowed(21) As % of Total Determined Number Dismissed(21) As % of Total Determined Number Withdrawn(21) As % of Total Determined 
		
		
			 1997 21,090 1,180 6 18,145 86 1,720 8 
			 1998 25,320 2,355 9 21,195 84 1,770 7 
			 1999 19,460 5,280 27 11,135 57 3,050 16 
			 2000 19,395 3,340 17 15,580 80 475 2 
			 2001 43,415 8,155 19 34,440 79 825 2 
		
	
	Notes:
	(19) Figures rounded to the nearest five.
	(20) Based on information supplied by the Lord Chancellor's Department.
	(21) Based on data supplied by the Presenting Officers Unit within the Home Office.
	Provisional Figures.
	
		Appeals on Asylum Cases Determined by the IAT and outcomes, 1997–2001(22)
		
			  Asylum Appeals Determined by the IAT(23),(24)  Appellant(25) AllowedDismissedWithdrawn  Secretary of State(25) AllowedDismissedWithdrawn 
		
		
			 1997 1,375 .. .. .. .. .. .. 
			 1998 1,090 .. .. .. .. .. .. 
			 1999 1,790 .. .. .. .. .. .. 
			 2000 2,635 650 (32%) 1,225 (59%) 185 (9%) 170 (46%) 165 (45%) 35 (10%) 
			 2001 3,190 315 (21%) 1,020 (70%) 125 (9%) 160 (53%) 120 (40%) 25 (8%) 
		
	
	Notes:
	(22) Figures rounded to the nearest five.
	(23) Includes cases remitted back to the IAA (not shown on this table).
	(24) Based on information supplied by the Lord Chancellor's Department.
	(25) Based on data supplied by the Presenting Officers Unit within the Home Office.
	.. = not available.
	Provisional Figures.

Human Trafficking

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress his Department has made in the last 12 months in breaking up and/or bringing criminal charges against members of organised gangs who smuggle people into the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: The UK Government are determined to tackle organised immigration crime, both the smuggling and the trafficking of human beings. Reflex, the multi-agency task force was set up in 2000 specifically as the enforcement arm of our comprehensive strategy to combat organised immigration crime.
	Since April 2001, Reflex has launched 83 operations, disrupted or dismantled 15 organised crime groups involved in organised immigration crime, and arrested 135 facilitators of whom 40 have been charged and 35 convicted. Currently, Reflex has 47 proactive operations underway and a further 55 under development.
	Reflex has posted a senior police officer and a chief immigration officer to Romania as part of a joint project with the Romanian authorities (Reflex Romania), to target organised immigration criminals involved in smuggling and trafficking through the region. It has also established a network of Immigration Liaison Officers (ILOs) who work with other Governments to encourage and support action to disrupt criminal gangs and create a joint intelligence structure. ILOs are already posted at nine key locations across Eastern Europe and the Balkans.

Prague Airport

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the pre-clearance checks programme operating at Prague airport will be extended to other airports in Europe or elsewhere; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: There are no plans at this time to deploy pre-clearance operations at any airport other than Prague.

Czech Romanies

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Czech Romanies have, in each of the last three years, (a) applied for asylum in the UK, (b) been granted asylum and (c) been removed having failed to achieve asylum status.

Beverley Hughes: It is not possible to say how many asylum applicants from the Czech Republic are of Romany origin. Data on the ethnic origin of asylum seekers are not collated centrally and are therefore not available; the number of those who applied would only be available by examination of individual case-files at disproportionate cost.
	The tables show the number of applications, initial decisions and removals of nationals of the Czech Republic for the last three years.
	
		Applications received for asylum in the United Kingdom, and initial decisions(26),(27), 1999–2001 for nationals of the Czech Republic -- Number of principal applicants
		
			  Applications received(28) Initial Decisions(29)  Cases considered under normal procedures(30)  Backlog clearance exercise(31) 
			Granted asylum Granted ELR Refused Granted asylum or ELR under backlog criteria Refused under backlog criteria(32) 
		
		
			 1999 1,790 275 * — 275 * — 
			 2000 1,200 1,800 10 10 1,775 * — 
			 2001 880 895 — 5 890 — — 
		
	
	Notes:
	(26) Figures rounded to the nearest 5, with * = 1 or 2.
	(27) Decision figures do not necessarily relate to applications received in the same period.
	(28) May exclude some cases lodged at Local Enforcement Offices between January and March 2000.
	(29) Information is of initial decisions, excluding the outcome of appeals or other subsequent decisions.
	(30) Cases considered under normal procedures may include some cases decided under the backlog criteria.
	6 Cases decided under measures aimed at reducing the pre 1996 asylum application backlog.
	(31) Includes some cases where the application has been refused on substantive grounds.
	Provisional figures
	
		
			 Czech principal asylum applicants removed 
		
		
			 1999 n/a 
			 2000 n/a 
			 2001 800 
		
	
	Notes:Figures rounded to the nearest five.
	Provisional data, subject to change.
	Data have been estimated due to data quality issues.
	(32) Includes persons departing ''voluntarily'' after enforcement action had been initiated against them, and persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration.
	(33) Nationality breakdown of dependants removed is not available.

Czech Romanies

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his policy relating to Romanies from the Czech Republic seeking asylum.

Beverley Hughes: Applications for asylum made by Roma from the Czech Republic are considered on their individual merits, in accordance with our obligations under the 1951 UN Refugee Convention.
	The objective country information about the situation for Roma in the Czech Republic shows that asylum claims based on discrimination against Roma are manifestly unfounded. The independent Immigration Appeal Tribunal have also reached this conclusion.

Brussels Station

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has officials placed at Brussels station to ensure that passengers who wish to enter the UK have the correct documentation; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Discussions are under way to extend juxtaposed controls to the Brussels Eurostar service. In advance of this UK immigration officials arrived at the Gare du Midi in Brussels on 13 October to take part in a series of exercises. Whilst at the station they operate in an advisory capacity to assist and support Belgian officials in checking the documentation of Eurostar passengers travelling to the UK.

Sick Leave

Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Home Office staff have taken (a) periods of sick leave of over one month and (b) early retirement because of work related stress and depression since 1992.

Beverley Hughes: The Home Office has not retained records on length of sick leave by staff from 1992. But for the period September 2001 to September 2002, records show that the Home Office had 694 staff out of a total of 11,666 on sick leave for more than one month, where one month is defined as 28 working days.
	Records are not maintained by the Home Office which enable ill-health retirements to be separately identified as work related. Our records indicate that at 15 March 2001 for the previous 12 months, 327 early retirements were in the mental disorder category. But some mental disorders are not stress related and some stress related sickness manifests itself in a physical condition.

Capital Punishment

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will undertake a review of his policy on capital punishment.

Hilary Benn: No.

Police Officers

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he is taking to increase the time police officers can spend on the streets rather than dealing with paperwork.

John Denham: We are committed to tackling the administrative burdens and inefficient working practices that keep officers off the streets. My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary established a Taskforce, under the Chairmanship of Sir David O'Dowd, to identify ways in which forces can free up the time of front line officers. The Taskforce's report was published on 17 September and contained 52 recommendations to increase the presence of police in communities. This is a vital opportunity to change the culture of the police service and bring about a real difference to the everyday lives of officers on the front line.
	We have now set up a Steering Group, co-chaired by the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Home Office, to take forward these recommendations. We are working with key stakeholders to reduce bureaucracy in police stations, on the streets and in court.

Rebka Fessenhale

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received about the case of Rebka Fessenhale who is claiming asylum; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The Home Office received representations from sources including the hon. Member and Ms Fessenhale's representatives in relation to her case.
	Ms Fessenhale's appeal hearing took place on 4 September 2002 and the determination was reserved by the Adjudicator. The outcome of the appeal is now awaited.

IND

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the backlog of asylum cases at the IND is.

Beverley Hughes: There were 35,300 asylum applications awaiting an initial decision on 30 June 2002, less than half the 87,800 on 31 December 2000. This figure relates to the number of cases i.e. the number of principal applicants.
	Information on the number of cases awaiting an initial decision (including work in progress) is published quarterly on the Home Office website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration 1.htm.

Forensic Pathology Services

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans the Government have for the provision of forensic pathology services in England and Wales.

John Denham: Forensic pathologists play a crucial role in the criminal justice system. Their principle function is the conduct of post-mortem examinations in cases of suspicious or sudden deaths to determine the cause and time of death. This information is critical to homicide investigations.
	I have now seen the report of the independent review of the provision of forensic pathology services, which I commissioned last year.
	The review recommended that: the decline in numbers of forensic pathologists should be reversed through a sustained training programme; improved administrative arrangements should be put in place to monitoring service levels and ensure that standards are maintained; steps should be taken to ensure that there are improved facilities for the conduct of post-mortem examinations.
	The Government are considering this report and will reach decisions after the review has been discussed by the Policy Advisory Board on Forensic Pathology.

Burglaries

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many burglaries were estimated to have been (a) reported and (b) unreported in (i) urban, (ii) rural and (iii) suburban areas for each year since 1979.

John Denham: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The following tables show the numbers of burglaries per 10,000 households for urban, rural and suburban areas, as measured by the British Crime Survey. There is no commonly agreed definition of rural areas. Results here use the Office for National Statistics (ONS) District Level Classification in order to provide the urban, suburban and rural breakdown. The ONS classification of areas was revised for authorities in 1999. The revision produced a different hierarchical structure hence there is little direct comparability with the results of the original classification. Therefore, it is not possible to give the figures for the most recent sweep of the British Crime Survey (BCS).
	
		Numbers of reported incidents per 10,000 households
		
			  Urban Suburban Rural England and Wales 
		
		
			 1999 482 298 257 373 
			 1997 664 298 289 478 
			 1995 697 424 402 549 
			 1993 855 398 243 580 
			 1991 706 331 267 481 
			 1987 523 254 241 388 
			 1983 455 267 51 325 
		
	
	Notes:
	1 British Crime Survey.
	2 Note that estimates for 1995 to 1999 are not directly comparable with previous years due to new weighting of the data. Therefore, estimates from 1995 to 1999 may also vary from those previously published.
	3 Results for 1983 to 1997 should be treated with caution due to small sample sizes.
	
		Numbers of unreported incidents per 10,000 households
		
			  Urban Suburban Rural England and Wales 
		
		
			 1999 305 152 127 216 
			 1997 392 196 96 275 
			 1995 415 158 193 286 
			 1993 400 179 151 275 
			 1991 299 133 91 197 
			 1987 312 188 37 224 
			 1983 207 154 72 167 
		
	
	Notes:
	1 British Crime Survey.
	2 Note that estimates for 1995 to 1999 are not directly comparable with previous weighting of the data. Therefore, estimates from 1995 to 1999 may also vary from those previously published.
	3 Results for 1983 to 1997 should be treated with caution due to small sample sizes.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Greenhouse Gases

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry by what percentage (a) greenhouse gas and (b) CO2 emissions in 2001 differed from those of 1990 ; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: I have been asked to reply.
	UK emissions data for the year 2001 will be finalised in March 2003 and submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in April next year, as required by the UK's international reporting obligations. UK data to the year 2000 reported and published last March show that total greenhouse gas emissions decreased by some 12.8 per cent. over the period 1990 to 2000. Carbon dioxide fell by about 7.5 per cent.
	Provisional carbon dioxide emissions estimates for 2001 are available. These indicate that emissions have reduced by about 6.1 per cent. between 1990 and 2001. The increase between 2000 and 2001 is attributed to outside temperature differences and an increase in coal consumption linked to an increase in gas prices relative to coal prices.

Electronic Trading

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she expects the study commissioned by the office of the e-Envoy and DTI on making the UK the best place to trade electronically by the end of the parliament to be published; and if she will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: I have been asked to reply.
	The study commissioned by the Office of the e-Envoy and DTI will be published in November and copies placed in the libraries of the House.

Equality

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the next steps are in implementing the equal treatment Directives 2000/43/EC and 2000/78/EC adopted in 2000 under Article 13 of the EC Treaty; and what progress has been made in taking forward the Government's review of the long-term arrangements for offering advice, support and guidance on equality matters announced on 15 May.

Patricia Hewitt: My hon. Friend the Minister for Women in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, has today published a summary of our plans to change existing equality legislation and to introduce new legislation to take forward implementation of the Employment and Race Directives—Equality and Diversity: The Way Ahead. We intend to make equality legislation as coherent and easy to use as possible. We have produced draft regulations to achieve these changes and are asking for comments on our proposals.
	This work builds on our current arrangements for tackling discrimination, and has been shaped by extensive consultation over the last two years. The key features will be:
	new legislation prohibiting discrimination on the grounds of religion and belief and sexual orientation in the areas of employment and vocational training; and
	important changes to the Race Relations Act 1976 and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
	We intend to have new provisions on race, religion and belief and sexual orientation in place in 2003, and on disability in 2004. We also intend to make some modifications to the Equal Pay Act in 2003, following consultation in Towards Equal Pay for Women. We will consult separately on proposals for legislation to prohibit discrimination on grounds of age, as well as the new Equal Treatment Amendment Directive.
	In addition, we are committed to getting the right framework to support equality legislation. We are, therefore, also publishing today a separate consultation paper—Equality and Diversity: Making it Happen. This considers the contribution of equality institutions to making equal opportunities a reality and to promoting equality and diversity across society, and sets out a range of options for future structures for these institutions, including a single equality commission. It considers a range of related issues, including the implications for Scotland and Wales and the regional and local dimension.
	We have arranged for copies of these documents and the draft legislation to be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Equality

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made on Government action to help close the pay gap between men and women.

Patricia Hewitt: On Thursday 17 October, I launched a consultation on the design of the equal pay questionnaire. The Employment Act 2002 provides a new power to introduce an equal pay questionnaire into the Equal Pay Act 1970. We are seeking views by 10 January 2003 on a draft questionnaire, with the aim of bringing it into effect, subject to Parliamentary approval, in April 2003. The questionnaire will help women who think they may not be receiving equal pay to request key information from their employers before deciding whether to bring a case. In some cases this could lead to resolving or settling a claim rather than taking the tribunal route.
	The questionnaire is one of a raft of changes we are introducing to speed up and simplify equal pay cases; and it forms part of the Government's drive to close the pay gap between men and women. Also published on the Women and Equality Unit's website is a briefing paper ''Equal Pay and Pay Gap—Update on Government Action''. This provides an update on Government action to narrow the pay gap and progress made following the Government's response to Denise Kingsmill's report on Women's Employment and Pay (December 2001).

Exports (Iran)

Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many licence applications for the export of beryllium to Iran have been made in each year since 1997; how many applications have been granted; what quantity and value of beryllium has been exported to Iran in each year; what undertakings were sought about end-use; and what end-use monitoring has been undertaken.

Nigel Griffiths: The number of Standard Individual Export Licence applications that have been received and granted in each year since 2 May 1997, for the proposed export of beryllium to Iran, is one in 2001.
	Between 2 May 1997 and 17 September 2002, no Open Individual Export Licence applications were received or granted for the proposed export of beryllium to Iran.
	The DTI issued a licence in January for the export of 10 grams—less than half an ounce of beryllium to the University of Science and Technology in Tehran. Written assurances were received in relation to the use of this.
	End-use Monitoring is undertaken by the FCO.

Exports (Iran)

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she expects to grant an export licence to A. W. Plume Ltd in respect of their application of 20 August 2002 to export pneumatic and electrical components to Iran.

Nigel Griffiths: A decision has not yet been reached on the application from A. W. Plume Ltd in respect of the proposed export of pneumatic and electrical components to Iran, but will be taken as quickly as possible consistent with the need to give full consideration to the issues involved.

Departmental Websites

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the website links associated with her Department, including sites now dormant or closed, and indicating whether they are live, dormant or closed; what the start up costs were for each site listed; what the operating costs were in each year since start up for each site; which company hosted each site; what assessment takes place for each site; which company does the assessment; if she will place the assessment reports in the Library; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The Department does not keep this information centrally, and to gather all the information would incur disproportionate costs. The principal DTI web site is at http://www.dti.gov.uk, and this provides links to other web sites associated with the Department.

SMEs

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to her answer of 19 September 2002, Official Report, column 170W, on SMEs, when she expects the figures for 2001 to be made available; and if she will make a statement.

Nigel Griffiths: The 2001 figures are now available and include full-time and part-time employment.
	
		Employment (thousands, start 2001)
		
			 Small (0–49 employees) Medium (50–249 employees) Large (250+ employees) Total 
		
		
			 9,809 2,720 10,092 22,622 
		
	
	Sources:
	Small and Medium Enterprise (SME)
	Statistics for the United Kingdom 2001,
	Small Business Service.
	Small businesses, accounted for over 99 per cent. of businesses, about 43 per cent. of non-government employment and 36 per cent. of turnover. In contrast the 7,000 largest businesses accounted for 45 per cent. of non-government employment and 49 per cent. of turnover.
	During 2000, employment in small businesses saw a rise in numbers in line with the UK increase of 2 per cent. Employment in medium sized business saw a 7 per cent. increase during the year, and large businesses saw a 1 per cent. increase.

Small Business Service

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what operational targets she has set for the Small Business Service for 2002–03.

Nigel Griffiths: The Small Business Service was established on 3 April 2000.
	The vision of the SBS is for the UK, by 2005, to be the best place in the world to start and grow a business. Its purpose is to build an enterprise society in which small businesses thrive and achieve their potential.
	The SBS will review its priorities regularly in response to the needs of small business. In line with the requirement for Executive Agencies to be given operational targets, I have set the following targets for the 2002–3 year:-
	Publish by October 2002 a strategy for the SBS for the years 2003–4 to 2005–6.
	10 per cent. increase in the number of people aged under 30 years participating in Enterprise Insight, Young Enterprise and STEP.
	Implement the small firms litmus test across government by March 2003.
	Reduce the gap in business start-up rates between the most and least disadvantaged local authority wards by 1 percentage point a year.
	By end 2002–3, establish and implement an accreditation system for Community Development Finance Institutions to enable businesses to benefit from the community investment tax credit in the 2002 Budget.
	Launch the ''Bridges'' Community Development Venture Fund (formerly known as the Community Development Venture Fund) by June 2002.
	Publish an action plan in response to consultation on a national strategy for start-ups by October 2002.
	Increase the market penetration and overall customer satisfaction level of the business Link operator network over 2001–2 levels.
	Improve small business access to finance, through:
	the 6 remaining Regional Venture Capital Funds to be launched by 31 December 2002;
	6 Investment Readiness demonstration projects to be underway by September 2002;
	Early Growth funds to invest in 200 small businesses by March 2003.
	Achieve recognition as an Investor in People in 2002–3.
	Improve on prompt payment performance from 2001–2 to achieve payment of 100 per cent. of valid invoices within 30 days.

Energywatch

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when Energywatch's report and Account for November 2001 to March 2002 will be laid before Parliament.

Brian Wilson: I laid a copy before each House of Parliament yesterday.

Export Licences

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the countries identified as those where sustainable development is likely to be an issue in respect of applying criterion 8 in determining applications for export licences.

Nigel Griffiths: holding answer 21 October 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on 31 July 2002, Official Report, columns 309–12W.

Mobile Phone Operators

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she expects to receive the Deloitte and Touche audit of the UK mobile phone operators' compliance and implementation of the voluntary code; and if she will make this public.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The Federation of the Electronics Industry has commissioned an independent review by Deloitte and Touche of the implementation by the five mobile phone licensees of their ''Ten Commitments'' to best practice in consultation about the siting of mobile phone base stations. The FEI expects to be able to publish this by the end of 2002.

Broadband

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what percentage of households in the Torbay constituency have access to broadband lines; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The Government do not compile figures for broadband connections broken down into individual constituencies. However, a map showing geographical availability broadband services can be found in the UK Online Annual Report (http://www.e-envoy.gov.uk/oee/oee.nsf/sections/reports-anrep2001-images/$file/fig01.pdf).

Broadband

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement about the role of her Department's broadband regional strategy; how many staff are employed by her Department to promote broadband; and what progress has been made in extending broadband to rural areas.

Stephen Timms: At a regional level, DTI is currently setting up a new regional broadband unit, whereby a broadband expert will be located in each of the English regions and the devolved administrations, with the aim of stimulating the take-up and availability of broadband across the UK. The work of this unit will therefore include looking at extending broadband to rural and remote areas. The Department has also provided the regions and devolved administrations with the #30 million Broadband Fund to develop innovative schemes and pilot projects to help extend broadband networks.
	When current recruitment exercises have been completed, the number of people employed by the Department to promote our broadband strategy will be around 20, which includes the regional broadband unit. The Department's UK Online for Business and Digital Content and Publishing teams also contribute to our broadband work.

South West Regional Development Agency

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many officials are employed by the South West Regional Development Agency on ICT and related issues.

Alan Johnson: South West of England Regional Development Agency employs a regional ICT Strategy Manager who in turn employs 3 consultants to help with the RDA's ICT strategy development. Various staff in the RDA help support ICT development in the region, for example, the Innovation team of five, the Supply Solutions Team of six and a member of the RDA's skills team. There are also other staff members within the Enterprise and Innovation Directorate and the Development Directorate who contribute to the region's ICT development and related issues.

Community Development Venture Capital Fund

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the private companies involved in the Community Development Venture Capital Fund.

Nigel Griffiths: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 2 July 2002, Official Report, column 287W, which listed the private companies investing in the fund.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Magistrates

Julian Brazier: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, when she last met representatives of the Magistrates' Courts Central Council to discuss the future of magistrates' courts.

Yvette Cooper: I last met representatives of the Central Council of Magistrates' Courts Committees to discuss the future of magistrates' courts on 9 October 2002.

Land Registry

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what plans the Government have to extend the powers of the Land Registry to adjudicate on cases of dispute of ownership on non-registered land in urban areas.

Yvette Cooper: The Government have no plans to extend the powers of the Land Registry to disputes relating to unregistered land. The Government's aim is to bring unregistered landowners within the scope of those powers by completing the land register for England and Wales.

Domestic Violence

Paul Clark: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what steps her Department is taking to alleviate the problems of victims of domestic violence.

Rosie Winterton: The Government remain committed to tackling domestic violence.
	An Inter-Ministerial Group set up last November is working across Government on five key areas for action. My Department is responsible for leading work on improving the interface between the criminal, civil and family law. We aim to identify ways to make the process less distressing for victims by working with stakeholders and voluntary organisations at local and national level to develop a more integrated approach that tackles the impacts of domestic violence as part of the justice process.

Domestic Violence

David Lepper: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what support her Department offers to voluntary organisations giving assistance to victims of domestic violence.

Rosie Winterton: We work very closely with local and national organisations which support victims of domestic violence. I recently set up a new Advisory Group to help the Department to develop further its domestic violence policy and to understand better issues that concern survivors of domestic violence and those who support and represent them. We also work closely with a number of local initiatives, such as the Leeds Cluster Court Project and ''Standing Together'', offering advice and support and providing a link to the other Government Departments involved, such as the Home Office and the CPS.

Office for the Supervision of Solicitors

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, if she will make a statement on the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors.

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, if she will make a statement on the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors.

Rosie Winterton: We have serious concerns about the performance of the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors (OSS), which is being monitored closely. The Lord Chancellor has warned the OSS that unless swift and substantive improvements are made across the board, he will not hesitate to implement his reserve powers which allow for the establishment of a Legal Services Complaints Commissioner.

Legal Aid

Ian Lucas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what steps she is taking to increase the number of advocates carrying out criminal and legal aid work.

Rosie Winterton: None. The Government are not aware of any shortages or of any solicitors or defendants having difficulty in obtaining the services of an advocate. My Department and the Legal Services Commission continue to monitor the situation.

Legal Aid

Andy Burnham: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, if she will make a statement on measures his Department is taking to improve the provision of legal aid advice services.

Rosie Winterton: The Lord Chancellor's Department has worked with the Legal Services Commission to establish the Community Legal Service, to improve access for all to good quality civil legal and advice services. Community Legal Service Partnerships, now covering nearly all areas of England and Wales, are central to this policy and are responsible for coordinating service delivery based on local priority needs. The Community Legal Service Fund, which replaced Legal Aid, provides funding for those services now being delivered under these new arrangements.

Dispute Resolution

David Cairns: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, what role her Department plays in alternative means of dispute resolution

Rosie Winterton: The introduction of the Civil Procedure Rules in 1999 imposed, for the first time, a duty on courts to encourage and facilitate the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). The Rules also seek to influence the behaviour of parties in the pre-litigation period through pre-action protocols, which further encourage parties to settle their disputes by using ADR.
	In March 2001 the Lord Chancellor announced that all Government Departments and their Agencies had pledged to consider and use ADR to resolve disputes involving them in all suitable cases, wherever the other party accepts it.
	In addition, a number of courts in England and Wales have set up court based pilot mediation schemes, with the approval of the Lord Chancellor.

''Justice for All''

Peter Duncan: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when she next expects to meet with members of the lay magistracy to discuss the administration of justice following the publication of the ''Justice for All'' White Paper.

Yvette Cooper: Following the publication of the Criminal Justice White Paper, ''Justice for All'', I met a number of Magistrates' representative bodies to discuss the White Paper, and these meetings will continue as we develop our proposals. In addition a letter was sent to all Magistrates informing them of our proposals.

Correspondence

Graham Allen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when the Lord Chancellor will reply to the letter of 17 September from the hon. Member for Nottingham, North on the legality of action on Iraq.

Rosie Winterton: The letter of 17 September was sent to the right hon. Harriet Harman MP, the Solicitor General, at the Law Officers' Office, and not to the Lord Chancellor nor any minister in the Lord Chancellor's Department. The Solicitor General will reply to the letter shortly.

Transsexual People

Lynne Jones: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will make it her policy to refer to transsexual people rather than transsexuals in Government documents and in material that will form parliamentary records.

Rosie Winterton: My Department has already adopted this convention. In so far as I am able to ensure this, all official documents published in the future on this subject should refer to transsexual people or transsexual persons, rather than transsexuals.

Germany

Keith Vaz: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when she next intends to visit Germany.

Rosie Winterton: At present, neither I, my right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor, nor my Ministerial colleagues have plans to visit Germany.

HEALTH

Mental Health Services

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money was allocated to (a) health authorities and (b) local authorities for spending on mental health services in each year since 1997; how much of that money was spent on mental health services; and how much was ring-fenced.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 1 March 2002
	Health authorities receive general allocations and unless funds are ring-fenced, decisions are made locally as to the specific services these are allocated to. In addition to general allocations, additional allocations for mental health made to health authorities since 1997 are set out in the table below.
	
		
			  Allocations 'millions 
			  97–98 98–99 99–00 00–01 01–02 02–03 
		
		
			 Health Authority 10.7 0 68.5 66 12.35 rev 
			 64 cap 93.5 rev 
			 83 cap 
			 Local Authorities 69 116 63 129 132 133 
		
	
	Allocations to local authorities for mental health services are made through the mental health grant. These funds are ring fenced and audited to ensure that expenditure is on mental health services.

Departmental Activities (Isle of Wight)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the activities pursued by his Department that have had a particular impact on the Isle of Wight since 7 June 2001.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 10 June 2002
	This information can only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	The Departmental Report for the Department sets out the aims and objectives for the Department, and describes the main activities which support them. It covers different business areas for which the Department is responsible: public health, the National Health Service, social care and departmental management. It sets out resources committed to each, the results that are being achieved and the priorities for the future. The 2001 report can be found on the following website: hhtp://www.doh.gov.uk/dohreport/report 2001.
	The 2002 Departmental Report will be published shortly.

EU Management Committees

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the EU Committee of senior officials on public health is next due to meet; whether representatives of the Scottish Executive (a) have been and (b) are members of it; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The Committee of Senior Officials on Public Health (CSOPH) meets twice a year. This year's meetings are on 3 July and 4 December.
	The Committee is made up of senior officials with responsibility for national health care systems. Each member state is entitled to nominate one representative and one alternate. The UK representative and his alternate represent all UK Health Departments.
	No CSOPH representative has yet come from the Scottish Executive.

Patient Rights

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many residents with preserved rights were reassessed as being outside the scope of social services and entitled to free continuing care under the ruling in ex parte Coughlan for each strategic health authority in the last year.

Jacqui Smith: This information is not collected centrally.

Children's Hospices

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the Government have invested in children's hospices in England and Wales in (a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999, (d) 2000 and (e) 2001; and what the projected level is in 2002.

Hazel Blears: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Mr. Kolathuv Unni

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will order a public inquiry into the case of Mr. Kolathuv Unni including (a) his recruitment back into the NHS and (b) the conduct of the General Medical Council; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: holding answer 11 July 2002
	We have no current plans to hold a public inquiry. The Department has taken steps to strengthen recruitment procedures in the National Health Service to safeguard patients. Mr. Unni remains suspended from the medical register. The General Medical Council are considering further action following the decision to impose a prison sentence on Mr. Unni. The GMC is also consulting on proposals to reform its registration process.

NHS Walk-In Centres

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will publish the usage rates of the NHS walk-in centres; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: In aggregate, usage of National Health Service walk-in centres has increased from 0.575 million visits in 2000–01 to an estimated 1.4 million in 2002–03. As NHS walk-in centres are a pilot scheme we do not routinely publish performance data on individual centres. Monthly usage rates from March 2000 to August 2001 were, however, published in the independent national evaluation report by the University of Bristol. This is available on the University's website at www.epi.bris.ac.uk/wic/.

Health Protection Agency

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how consultants in communicable disease control will be managed after completion of the work of the Health Protection Agency; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: The strategy document Getting Ahead of the Curve proposed that consultants in communicable disease control should transfer to employment by the Health Protection Agency. They would continue to operate at local level, and would have new opportunities for training, career development and the acquisition of special knowledge in areas of health protection.

NHS Funding Formula

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consultations the Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation has made with regard to its review of the Your NHS Funding Formula.

John Hutton: The advisory committee on resource allocation's (ACRA) terms of reference are to advise the Secretary of State for Health on the distribution of resources across primary and secondary care. ACRA is an expert body whose membership is made up of individuals with a wide range of relevant experience and expertise from within and outside the National Health Service. ACRA does not conduct formal consultations.

NHS Funding Formula

Dave Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether the new funding formula will take into account the number of people who have private medicine when assessing need;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the reform of the funding system for the NHS and the options, method of consultation and timetable for the review; and whether the review will take into account the number of people who have access to private medical treatment.

John Hutton: The existing formula used to allocate National Health Service resources has been reviewed by the advisory committee on resource allocation (ACRA). The intention is that reducing health inequalities will be a key criterion for allocating NHS resources to different parts of the country. We are currently considering ACRA's recommendations. ACRA does not conduct formal consultations. I cannot at this stage anticipate the outcome. Later this autumn when we announce the revenue allocations for the next three years we will explain changes to the formula.

NHS Patients (Out-of-area Treatment)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the health authorities in England which indicate populated islands, showing the expenditure per person on those islands to assist with travel for treatment.

John Hutton: Health authorities with populated islands are:
	Essex
	Hampshire and Isle of Wight
	Kent and Medway
	Northumberland, Tyne and Wear
	South West Peninsula
	Cumbria and North Lancashire
	Information on expenditure per head to assist with travel for treatment is not collected centrally.

NHS Patients (Out-of-area Treatment)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding is made available to health authorities which include populated islands to recognise and assist with the costs of patients' travel for mainland treatment; and what the criteria are for the allocation of such funds.

John Hutton: There is no specific adjustment for island populations in the formula used to allocate funding to health authorities and primary care trusts.

Foot Care

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of the results of the consultation on chiropody and podiatry services; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The Health Professions Council (HPC), which regulates chiropody and podiatry alongside eleven other health professions, concluded its consultation on 30 September. The HPC will analyse the feedback it has received and produce a document summarising the replies, which they aim to publish in November.

Acute Services Trusts

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list those NHS acute services trusts which operate hospitals more than 50 miles apart, listing the number of beds in service at each such hospital.

John Hutton: The only National Health Service trust that falls into the over 50-mile category is United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust. Information on the number of beds in service at each of the relevant hospitals is shown below:
	
		
			 Hospital Bed numbers and type 
		
		
			 Gainsborough Nil 
			 Spalding 28 healthcare and elderly 
			 Skegness (in A&E Minor) 3 acute recovery 
			 Grantham 190 acute 
			 Lincoln 700 acute 
			 Louth County 140 acute

National Service Framework for Older People

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many councils have reviewed their eligibility criteria for adult social care to ensure they do not discriminate on the basis of age as part of the milestones set out in the National Service Framework for Older People.

Jacqui Smith: Following publication of the Fair access to care services guidance in May 2002, councils are in the process of reviewing their eligibility criteria for adult social care. They should have completed their reviews and be ready to operate revised eligibility criteria by April 2003. By implementing the guidance councils will fulfil the first stage requirement of standard one of the national service framework for older people with respect to rooting out age discrimination.

National Service Framework for Older People

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many (a) specialist multi-disciplinary teams and (b) interfaces for care for older people throughout hospitals have been identified as part of the milestones set out in the National Service Framework for Older People;
	(2)  how many strategic and operational plans, including initial action to address identifed age discrimination, he (a) has received and (b) expects to receive as part of the milestones set out in the National Service Framework for Older People;
	(3)  how many of the intermediate care joint investment plans have been agreed, as set out in the National Service Framework for Older People milestones;
	(4)  which general hospitals have (a) submitted and (b) not submitted plans to introduce a specialised stroke unit by 2004 as part of the milestones set out in the National Service Framework for Older People.

Jacqui Smith: Information about progress against the April 2002 milestones set within the national service framework (NSF) for older people is currently being collected.
	National Health Service organisations have not been asked to submit centrally their plans to tackle any age discrimination identified in their audits of age-related policies, their intermediate care investment plans, or their plans to introduce specialised stroke units. Monitoring against the NSF milestones will provide the information needed centrally about progress in these areas.

National Service Framework for Older People

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consultation his Department has undertaken with housing and social services to ensure that the Better Care, Higher Standards charter is working, as set out in the milestones of the National Service Framework for Older People; and what areas of the charter have been found to have shortcomings.

Jacqui Smith: When the national Better Care, Higher Standards charter was published in December 1999, we undertook to carry out a review of its effectiveness after three years. We plan to complete this review by March 2003. This will include consultation with representatives of local councils.

Microbiologists

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many microbiologists were employed by the NHS; and what the vacancy rate for microbiologists was in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) region and (b) trust.

John Hutton: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Emergency Readmissions

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what target he has set to reduce emergency readmissions into hospital.

Jacqui Smith: The target set for 2002–3 is for no growth in emergency readmissions from the 2001–2 baseline of 5.4 per cent.

Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out the budget of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services over each of the last three years; and what the budget for CAMHS will be for each of the next three years.

Jacqui Smith: In the three years to the end of March 2003 we will have invested an additional #105 million in child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) provided by health and social services. On 16 October my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health, announced that CAMHS would receive an additional investment of #140 million over the next three years through increased grants to social services.
	In addition we have just set, in the priorities and performance framework, new capacity assumptions for health and social care which require a 10 per cent. per annum increase in CAMHS.

Bioterrorism

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the most recent assessment of the risk of a bioterrorist attack against the UK.

John Hutton: There is no evidence of a specific threat. The Department has contingency plans to respond to the deliberate release of a biological agent and keeps these plans under constant review.

General Practitioners

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many general practitioners in the south-east are operating a closed-list policy.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The information requested is not collected centrally.

General Practitioners

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GP surgeries in (a) London and (b) South East England have (i) opened and (ii) closed in each of the last five years.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The information requested is not collected centrally.

Adur, Arun and Worthing PCT

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements for profit-related pay and bonuses have been made for senior executives of the Adur, Arun and Worthing PCT.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	I am advised by Surrey & Sussex Strategic Health Authority that no performance related pay or bonuses have been paid to senior executives at Adur, Arun and Worthing Primary Care Trust.

Adur, Arun and Worthing PCT

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many general practitioners left their positions in the Adur, Arun and Worthing PCT area in the last year; and why.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		Unrestricted Principals and Equivalents (UPEs)(34) Leavers in England and Adur, Arun & Worthing PCT: 2000–01
		
			  Numbers 
		
		
			  Sept 2000–Sept 2001(35) 
			 England 1313 
			 of which:  
			 Adur, Arun & Worthing PCT 7 
		
	
	Notes:
	(34) UPEs includes GMS Unrestricted Principals, PMS Contracted GPs and PMS Salaried.
	(35) Leavers are defined as those UPEs reported in the Department of Health's annual GP census in one year but not in the following year.
	Leavers will include both career breaks and wastage.
	Data based on censuses as at 30 September 2000 & 2001
	Source:
	Department of Health General and Personal Medical Services Statistics.
	Information on the reasons for leaving is not collected.

Adur, Arun and Worthing PCT

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many general practitioners vacancies are open in the Adur, Arun and Worthing PCT area.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The information requested is not collected centrally.

NHS Overseas Nurses' Advice Line

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much it cost to establish the NHS Overseas Nurses' Advice Line.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The cost of setting up and training staff for the National Health Service Overseas Nurses' Advice Line was #7,767.

NHS Overseas Nurses' Advice Line

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) nurses and (b) non-medical staff are employed on the NHS Overseas Nurses' Advice Line.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	There is a pool of non-medical call operators who are employed on behalf of a number of clients that handles calls to the NHS Overseas Nurses' Advice Line. In addition, there is a dedicated team of staff with health careers expertise who are able to offer advice on supervised practice and National Health Service careers.

Hepatitis C

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice he has issued to NHS dentists treating sufferers of hepatitis C.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	We have issued guidance to the National Health Service in 1998 on protecting clinical health care workers such as dentists from infection with blood-borne viruses, including hepatitis C.
	The General Dental Council (GDC) has issued guidance to dentists which stresses the importance of taking appropriate measures to prevent cross-infection and of taking account of relevant guidance from the Department and the British Dental Association. The GDC has also advised dentists that it is unethical to refuse to treat a patient solely on the grounds that the person has a blood-borne virus or any other transmissible disease or infection.

Hepatitis C

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many PCTs offer interferon combination drugs to hepatitis C sufferers.

Hazel Blears: holding answer on 21 October 2002
	The Department does not hold information centrally on the number of primary care trusts (PCTs) that currently offer combination drug therapy for hepatitis C.
	From 1 January 2002, PCTs are under a statutory obligation to provide appropriate funding for treatments or drugs which have been recommended by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.

Hepatitis C

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting times are for hepatitis C sufferers to see a liver specialist, broken down by strategic regional health authority area.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The Department does not hold information centrally on the average waiting times for patients with hepatitis C to see a specialist.
	Patients diagnosed with hepatitis C are likely to be referred to physicians within the gastroenterology or infectious diseases specialities. Average outpatient waiting times for first appointment in these specialties in 2000–2001 by National Health Service region are shown in the table.
	
		Outpatient waiting times 2001–02, speciality gastroenterology: Trust based data by Region—effective length of wait from receipt of general practitioner written referral to first outpatient attendance (weeks)
		
			 Region Average waiting time (median) weeks 
		
		
			 Northern & Yorkshire 8.1 
			 Trent 6.9 
			 West Midlands 8.4 
			 North West 9.4 
			 Eastern 7.4 
			 London 8.3 
			 South East 7.4 
			 South West 10.3 
			 England 8.1 
		
	
	
		Outpatient waiting times 2001–02, speciality infectious diseases: Trust based data by Region—effective length of wait from receipt of GP written referral to first outpatient attendance (weeks)
		
			 Region Average waiting time (median) weeks 
		
		
			 Northern & Yorkshire 4.3 
			 Trent 6.3 
			 West Midlands 5.6 
			 North West 4.3 
			 London 3.1 
			 South East 3.2 
			 South West 2.0 
			 England 3.4

Hepatitis C

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to introduce screening for hepatitis C.

Hazel Blears: holding answer on 21 October 2002
	Our consultation paper, Hepatitis C Strategy for England, which was published on 14 August 2002, proposes that individuals at increased risk of infection or with otherwise unexplained liver disease should be offered testing for hepatitis C.
	The United Kingdom national screening committee has not recommended the introduction of antenatal screening for hepatitis C in the absence of a proven safe and effective intervention to prevent infant infection and limited evidence about the natural history and treatment of children infected with hepatitis C. This advice is in line with United States and European consensus statements. However, antenatal settings might provide an opportunity to offer hepatitis C testing to women at increased risk of infection.

Hepatitis C

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on hepatitis C public awareness campaigns last year.

Hazel Blears: holding answer on 21 October 2002
	Our consultation paper, Hepatitis C Strategy for England, which was published on 14 August 2002, identifies the need for a campaign to raise public awareness of hepatitis C. This campaign will be developed taking account of responses to the consultation exercise and meetings with stakeholders from the National Health Service and voluntary and community sectors.
	In the last financial year, 2001–2002, we made #90,000 in section 64 grant funding available to the British Liver Trust and Mainliners for activities connected to the provision of information to professionals and the public on hepatitis C. We also produced a hepatitis C briefing pack for health professionals, which included a patient leaflet for use in consultations at a cost of approximately #130,000.

Hepatitis C

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department's estimate is of the number of hepatitis C sufferers; and how many are receiving treatment in the NHS.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on Thursday 2 May 2002, Official Report column 998W and the reply I gave him on Tuesday 14 May 2002, Official Report, column 630W.

Available Beds

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will list the average daily number of available beds in wards open overnight in all specialities in England in (a) 1979 and (b) 1990–91 to 1995–96;
	(2)  if he will list the average daily number of (a) general and acute, (b) acute, (c) day only, (d) mental illness, (e) learning disability and (f) maternity beds open overnight in England in (i) 1979 and (ii) 1990–91 to 1995–96.

John Hutton: The average daily number of available beds in wards open overnight, by sector, for 1979 and 1990–91 to 1995–96 is given in the following table:
	
		
			 Year All specialities (exc. day only) General & acute Acute Mental illness Learning disability Maternity Day only 
		
		
			 1979 361,670 203,864 148,725 89,045 50,122 18,640  
			 1990–91 255,479 116,788 116,788 55,239 23,379 14,170 3,068 
			 1991–92 242,677 115,140 115,140 50,278 21,383 13,770 3,399 
			 1992–93 232,201 112,862 112,862 47,308 18,519 13,167 3,972 
			 1993–94 219,476 109,713 109,713 43,532 16,269 12,521 4,908 
			 1994–95 211,812 108,008 108,008 41,827 13,211 11,971 5,699 
			 1995–96 206,136 108,296 108,296 39,477 12,676 11,358 6,541 
		
	
	Note:
	Information on beds open day only were collected from 1987–88—no equivalent data are available for 1979.
	Source:
	Department of Health forms KH03, SH3

Nuclear Power Stations

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations his Department has received concerning alleged correlation between instances of leukaemia clusters and nuclear power stations in the UK.

Hazel Blears: The Black advisory group was commissioned in 1983, by the then Minister of Health, to investigate reports of a high incidence of leukaemia occurring in young people living in the vicinity of the Sellafield nuclear site. In their report, Black 1984, the advisory group confirmed that there was a higher incidence of leukaemia in young people resident in the area. They also concluded that the estimated radiation dose from the Sellafield discharges and other sources, received by the local population, could not account for the observed leukaemia incidence on the basis of knowledge available at that time. The uncertainties in the available data led the advisory group to make recommendations for further research and investigation.
	The committee on medical aspects of radiation in the environment (COMARE) was established in November 1985 in response to the final recommendation of the report of the independent advisory group chaired by Sir Douglas Black. Its terms of reference are to
	''assess and advise Government and the Devolved Administrations on the health effects of natural and man-made radiation in the environment and to assess the adequacy of the available data and the need for further research''. COMARE has now published seven reports and has also published several statements into allegations of cancer clusters around nuclear installations. Details can be found on the committee's web site at www.open.gov.uk/doh/comare.htm

Obesity

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to tackle obesity.

Hazel Blears: The Government are committed to tackling the rising trend in obesity. The prevention and management of obesity are at the heart of many of the Government's priority areas, as highlighted in the NHS Plan and national service frameworks, particularly those outlining action on CHD and diabetes. The Department is taking an integrated approach with cross-Government work at national, regional and local levels, where action is focused on improving diet and increasing physical activity levels, and includes:
	The Five-a-day programme to increase fruit and vegetable intakes, including the National School Fruit Scheme, and work with industry to increase provision and access.
	Initiatives with the food industry (including manufacturers and caterers) to improve the overall balance of diet including salt, fat and sugar in food, working with the Food Standards Agency.
	The Food in Schools and National Healthy Schools programmes, addressing food and nutrition in schools.
	The Welfare Foods scheme is being reviewed, in line with the NHS Plan commitment to use the resources more effectively to ensure children in poverty have access to a healthy diet.
	Increased support for breastfeeding, which is accepted as the best form of nutrition for infants to ensure a good start in life.
	PE and sports programmes for young people and the community in general, together with the School Sport Co-ordinator programme.
	A new programme for community physical activity pilots, led by primary care trusts.
	Guidance issued by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence on anti-obesity drugs and surgery.
	Local action to tackle obesity and physical inactivity, informed by advice from the Health Development Agency on what works.

Obesity

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for newspaper, television and radio campaigns concerning obesity, weight loss and healthy living.

Hazel Blears: We have no plans to run specific campaigns on obesity, weight loss and healthy living, although we will be extensively publicising the Five-a-day programme from the New Year. We have also funded the British Dietetic Association, as part of their Weight Wise campaign, to undertake project work on consumer messages and communication methods relating to weight management.
	The prevention and management of obesity are at the heart of many of the Government's priority areas, as highlighted in the NHS Plan and national service frameworks, particularly those outlining action on CHD and diabetes. Other commitments are also likely to have a positive impact on the prevention and management of obesity, including the infant feeding initiative, the national school fruit scheme, the food in schools programme and work with the food industry to address the sugar, fat and salt content of the diet. There is also substantial cross-government work to increase physical activity levels.

Food Labelling

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the reform of labelling requirements for food products.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 17 October 2002
	The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has adopted a wide-ranging action plan to tackle the issues consumers have identified as priorities for improving food labelling. The FSA is pressing for changes to European law and international standards and has established a number of working groups to explore the potential for voluntary improvements.

Non English-Speaking Medical Staff

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of NHS medical staff who are not English-speaking; and what provision is made for linguistic tuition for non-English speaking NHS medical staff.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	All medical staff employed in the National Health Service are English-speaking. Doctors are not permitted to work in the NHS until they are able to demonstrate that they possess good English language skills. Medical staff from outside the European Economic Area are required to pass the international English language testing system examination before they are eligible for registration with the General Medical Council and work in the UK. European Economic Area nationals are not required to take the international English language testing system examination to register with the General Medical Council. They are required, however, to demonstrate their language competency to their employer. The procedures for this are set out in guidance for NHS employers: Health Service Circular 1999/137.
	Training courses in English language are available throughout the UK at further education colleges. There are also special training courses to prepare doctors for the international English language testing system examination, most of which are provided free of charge to students.

Overseas Medical Staff

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of NHS consultants, doctors and nurses who will be employed from (a) the EU and (b) outside the EU over the next five years.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The following table shows the number of doctors, general practitioners (GPs) and consultants who qualified in the United Kingdom, within the rest of the European Economic Area and elsewhere.
	
		All NHS Doctors by country of qualification
		
			 England at 30 September 2001(36)   numbers (headcount) 
			  All countries of qualification United Kingdom Rest of EEA Elsewhere 
		
		
			 All Doctors of which 100,320 69,950 4,870 25,500 
			 GPs(37) 31,840 26,000 1,250 4,580 
		
	
	Notes:
	(36) 2001 is the most recent data available which details all NHS doctors.
	(37) All Practitioners includes GMS Unrestricted Principals, PMS Contracted GPs, PMS Salaried GPs, Restricted Principals, Assistants, GP Registrars, Salaried Doctors (para 52 SFA), PMS Other and GP Retainers.
	(38) HCHS shows Hospital, Public Health medicine and Community Health Services (HCHS) staff excluding medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are also GPs working part time in hospitals.
	Figures are rounded to the nearest ten
	Due to rounding, totals may not equal the sum of component parts
	Sources:
	Department of Health 2000 medical and dental workforce census
	Department of Health General and Personal Medical Services Statistics
	Delivering the NHS Plan, published in April 2002, provides the latest forecasts for growth in the National Health Service workforce. By 2008, we expect the NHS to have net increases over the September 2001 staff census of at least 15,000 consultants and GPs. We anticipate that international recruitment will contribute towards this figure and our international recruitment assumption for consultants and GPs is 1,000 by 2005. We anticipate that by 2005, compared to 1999, up to 35,000 extra nurses may be working in the NHS, who have been trained overseas.

Overseas Medical Staff

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors from abroad started work in the NHS in the last year; and how many of them have subsequently ceased working.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	Information on the number of doctors from abroad who join and leave the National Health Service is not available.

Public Health Laboratory

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received from health professionals regarding the transfer of the Public Health Laboratory to the NHS.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	A number of representations were received, both welcoming the proposals and raising concerns, which we sought to address in the final decisions on which laboratories would transfer to the National Health Service. This was announced on 3 September 2002.

Doctor Training

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of medical training courses for doctors in the UK deals with ICT in the NHS.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	Individual university medical schools determine their own undergraduate medical curriculum in the light of recommendations from the General Medical Council's (GMC) education committee, which has the statutory responsibility to determine the extent and knowledge and skill required for the granting of primary medical qualifications in the United Kingdom.
	The education committee's most recent recommendations on undergraduate medical education are contained in Tomorrow's Doctors, which was published in July 2002.
	The GMC's recommendations on general clinical training in the pre registration house officer (PRHO) year cover medical informatics, including how to use information storage and retrieval systems effectively. As part of their in-service training PRHOs are expected to become familiar with the information technology facilities of the hospital or health centre in which they are training.
	The content and standard of postgraduate medical training is the responsibility of the UK competent authorities, the Specialist Training Authority for specialist medicine and for general practice, the Joint Committee on Postgraduate Training for General Practice. These bodies have a vested interest in ensuring that doctors are prepared for practice—both in hospital and in general practice—including proficiency in the use of information and communication technology in the National Health Service.

Eczema

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) children and (b) adults suffer from eczema; and what plans he has to tackle this.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 21 October 2002
	Eczema is a very common condition, with prevalence estimated as eight to twenty per cent. for children and two to ten per cent. for adults: one to two and a half million and one to four million respectively in England and Wales. Most cases in children are of mild to moderate severity but eczema can, in some circumstances, cause severe morbidity in adults.
	The action on dermatology programme (AoD) has been looking at how services are organised and the resources used and this should help in the management of eczema. It is expected that the dermatology guidance will be published soon. Around #35 million has been awarded for AoD capital projects.

Operation Costs

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average cost to the NHS is of (a) hip replacements, (b) knee replacements, (c) heart bypass surgery and (d) cataracts performed by the Worthing and Southlands Hospital Trust.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		RPL: Worthing & Southland Hospitals NHS Trust
		
			   Day Case Elective Inpatient Non-Elective Inpatient 
		
		
			 HRG Code HRG Label Mean Average 
			 Unit Cost # 
			  Mean Average 
			 Unit Cost # 
			  Mean Average 
			 Unit Cost # 
			 B02 Phakoemulsification cataract extraction 
			 with lens implant 939 1,086 1,687 
			 B03 Other cataract extraction with lens implant 719 866 N/A 
			 E04 Coronary bypass N/A N/A N/A 
			 H02 Primary hip replacement N/A 4,457 6,577 
			 H04 Primary knee replacement N/A 4,989 6,474 
		
	
	Notes:
	1 The following information was submitted by Worthing & Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust as part of their 2001 submission for reference costs. The figures relate to the financial year 2000–01.
	2 Some procedures can be undertaken as a day case and / or inpatient, e.g. cataracts. Both have different costs, as shown above.
	3 This Trust did not report any activity for coronary artery bypass grafts in 2000–01.

PCTs

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements for profit-related pay and bonuses have been made for PCT management in England and Wales.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	Arrangements for performance-related pay and bonuses for primary care trust management is a matter for local determination. The Department has issued guidelines on pay but, in line with the Government's decision to decentralise the decision-making and control, it is for trusts locally to make and justify their own decisions. Copies of the guidelines have been placed in the Library.
	Information in respect of the arrangements for Wales should be sought from the National Assembly for Wales.

Acute Beds and Managers

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) acute beds and (b) managers there are in the NHS; and what these figures are as a relative proportion.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	The average daily number of acute beds in England for 2001 is 107,956. This represented an extra 700 beds since 2000—the first increase in general and acute beds in 30 years. This is one third of the way towards the NHS Plan target of 2,100 extra general and acute beds by April 2004.
	There are 26,285 (whole time equivalent) senior managers and managers working within the administration and estates areas of the National Health Service in England as at September 2001. The Government made a commitment to save #1 billion from management costs over five years from 1997–98. We are on course to do so and will publish the results once final accounts have been cleared and data analysed.

Electronic Appointment Technology

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the terms of his contract with EDS to supply electronic appointment technology to the NHS; and if he will list the other firms that were invited to tender for the contract to supply electronic appointment technology to the NHS.

John Hutton: holding answer 21 October 2002
	No contract has been awarded to EDS to supply electronic appointment system technology to the National Health Service.
	In line with the information technology procurement strategy proposed for the national programme for IT in the NHS, a selection process is underway using the NHScat managed services framework to identify and select a single ''prime service partner'' for electronic booking. The successful prime service partner will be contracted to provide and supply software products and planning and implementation services to local health communities jointly with potential systems and services suppliers.
	All companies on the NHS national framework agreement (NHScat), who were successful in the managed services category, were invited to submit proposals to become the prime service partner for the electronic booking project. The selection process is ongoing. A detailed evaluation was held of the twelve companies listed to provide IT managed services within the NHScat framework. These are BT Health, Computer Science Corporation (CSC), EDS, Elonex, Fujitsu Services, Hewlett Packard, Integris, Specialist Computer Centres (SCC), SX3, Siemens, Unisys, and Viglen. Following that, EDS and BT Health have been invited to put forward detailed proposals as potential IT managed service prime service partners for electronic booking systems. Any award of contract will be subject to successful conclusion of negotiations and approval of a formal business case.
	The selection process is being conducted under the supervision of the NHS Purchasing and Supplies Agency.

Correspondence

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to reply to the hon. Member for Nottingham North's letters of Friday 16 August and 8 August.

Jacqui Smith: A reply was sent to my hon. Friend on 14 October.

Correspondence

David Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the hon. Member for Spelthorne will receive a reply to his letter dated 22 August in relation to correspondence with the Surrey and Sussex Health Authority dated 17 April about Mr. G. Smith, a constituent.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 15 October 2002
	A reply was sent on 17 October.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Bed and Breakfast Accommodation

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many families there are in bed and breakfast accommodation in the last three years for which figures are avilable, broken down by local authority.

Tony McNulty: Showing available information reported by local authorities in England on the total number of households—including couples and single persons without children—accommodated in bed and breakfast units under statutory homelessness provisions at the end of March in each year since 1999 is avaiblable in the Library.
	National and regional figures are presented in a quarterly Statistical Release, and an accompanying Supplementary Table also summarises reported information at local authority level. Both of these are also available in the House library and via the ODPM website.
	Earlier this year the Government announced a new commitment to ensure that by March 2004 no family with children will be placed in B&B other than in an emergency, and even then for no more than 6 weeks. This was accompanied by changes in Housing Benefit subsidies to make leasing self-contained temporary accommodation more cost effective, and an additional #35 million to help local authorities find alternatives to B&B.

Local Government Finance

Vincent Cable: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the per capita central Government funding for local government expenditure has been for each London borough for the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Raynsford: The information has been placed in the Library of the House.

Local Government Finance

Anne Campbell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what level of rate support grant has been received by Cambridge City Council for the last five years at 2002 prices.

Nick Raynsford: Cambridge City Council received the following revenue support grant and redistributed national non-domestic rates between 1998–99 and 2002–03.
	
		Revenue Support Grant and Redistributed NNDR -- # Thousand
		
			  1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Revenue Support Grant (cash terms)(39) 5,530 5,527 5,496 6,157 5,849 
			 National Non-Domestic Rate (cash terms)(39) 3,743 4,063 4,595 4,615 5,231 
			 Total (cash terms) 9,273 9,590 10,091 10,772 11,080 
			  
			 Total (real terms at 2001–02 prices)(40) 9,917 10,013 10,308 10,772 10,810 
		
	
	Notes:
	(39) Source: Local Government Finance Settlements
	(40) Real terms calculated using the GDP deflator

Local Government Finance

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what level of rate support grant has been received by Milton Keynes Unitary Authority in each of the last five years at 2002 prices (a) in total and (b) per head of population.

Nick Raynsford: Milton Keynes Unitary Authority received the following revenue support grant and redistributed national non-domestic rates (NNDR) between 1998–99 and 2002–03 (a) in total and (b) per head of population.
	
		Revenue Support Grant and Redistributed NNDR -- # Thousand
		
			  1998–99 1999–200 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Revenue Support Grant (cash terms)(41) 71,942 74,490 72,924 80,691 73,976 
			 National Non-Domestic Rate (cash terms)(41) 46,461 51,080 58,517 58,183 64,530 
			 Total (cash terms) 118,403 125,570 131,441 138,874 138,506 
			 Total (real terms at 2001–02 prices)(42) 126,622 131,112 134,267 138,874 135,128 
			  
			 Total (at 2001–02 prices) per head (#)(42),(43) 691 715 733 754 733 
		
	
	Notes:
	(41) Source: Local Government Finance Settlements
	(42) Real terms calculated using GDP deflator
	(43) Amounts per head have been calculated using mid-year population estimates for the appropriate year from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Figures for 2001–02 and 2002–03 use the mid-2001 population estimates, which are based on the results of the 2001 census. Population estimates for earlier years are based on uprating from the 1991 census, and these will be revised by ONS at a later date.

Local Government Finance

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what provision he will make to fire authorities spending above their SSAs when he revises the SSA formula for fire; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: Statutory responsibility for the provision of fire services rests locally with the fire authority.
	We invited comments on options for changes to the formulae for the distribution of revenue support grant for local authority services, including fire, in a consultation period which ran from 8 July to 30 September. Our proposals will be announced in the provisional local government finance settlement later this year.
	The total provision for revenue funding for fire and other local authority services is considered in the spending reviews. Under Spending Review 2002, announced in July, the fire service share of Total Standard Spending in England will be increased by #61.6 million (4 per cent.) for 2003–04 and by increases of #70 million (4.4 per cent.) and #50 million (2.9 per cent.) in the following two years.

Fire Service

David Laws: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what action he plans to take to deploy additional military resources to Somerset in the event of industrial action by the Fire Brigades Union; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Raynsford: In the event of an industrial action by the Fire Brigades' Union, 5 Green Goddesses, 3 Breathing Apparatus Rescue Teams and 1 Regional Equipment Support Team will be based in Somerset. However resources are not tied to a particular authority and will be used flexibly to respond to incidents where the need is greatest.

Fire Service

Bob Spink: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what contingency plans he has in the event of strikes in the Fire Service during the winter of 2002–03.

Christopher Leslie: In the event of a strike by the Fire Service basic fire cover will be provided by the armed services. Firefighting cover will be provided by military personnel operating 827 Green Goddesses. They will be supported by 331 Breathing Apparatus Rescue Teams reinforced by 59 Regional Equipment Support Teams. In all about 19,000 military personnel will be engaged in this exercise.

Fire Service

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what measures are in place to ensure that the Fire Service has adequate resources and equipment.

Christopher Leslie: Statutory responsibility for the provision of fire services rests locally with the fire authority. However, a fire authority may not reduce its establishment without the approval of the Secretary of State under section 19 of the Fire Services Act 1947. Consent is only given when he is satisfied that the national standards of fire cover will be maintained. Fire authorities are inspected regularly by HM Fire Services Inspectorate as to the manner in which they are performing their functions.
	Under Spending Review 2002 the fire service share of Total Standard Spending in England will be increased by #61.6 million (4 per cent.) for 2003–04 and by increases of #70 million (4.4 per cent.) and #50 million (2. per cent.) in the following two years.
	There have also been substantial increases in fire service capital provision for England and Wales, with an increase of 67 per cent. in 2001–02. A further increase of 3.4 per cent. is planned for 2003–04 and this level of credits will be maintained for 2004–05 and 2005–06. An additional #200 million in PFI credit approvals has already been earmarked for the fire service, and a further #50 million in PFI credits will be made available to the service in both 2004–05 and 2005–06.
	#43 million will be provided under the Capital Modernisation Fund for mass decontamination equipment, supported by an additional #13 million in revenue funding. We have said that we shall fully fund the new fire service radio replacement strategy. Among other funding initiatives, we are providing #15 million additional funding over three years from 2003–4 for community fire safety and arson reduction initiatives, targeting socially deprived areas.
	Under the Central Local Partnership, we will continue to work closely with fire service stakeholders in England and Wales in the Fire Service Expenditure Forecasting Group to assess future funding pressures.

Fire Service

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  if he plans to bring the firefighters working in the Retained and Volunteer Duty System up to the same standard of training and pay as their whole time counterparts;
	(2)  What the pay levels are of members of the Emergency Fire Control Staff; and what proposals he has to bring wages in line with firefighters of equivalent rank.

Nick Raynsford: As announced on 5 September, an independent review of the Fire Service is being conducted by Professor Sir George Bain. The review will look at the future organisation and management of the fire service in the United Kingdom, including retained and voluntary firefighters. In that context it will look at pay and conditions of service. It would not be appropriate, therefore, for me to pre-empt the outcome of the review.

Fire Service

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the recent discussions with the Fire Brigades Union; and what conclusions have been reached.

Christopher Leslie: Following discussions with the Fire Brigades Union and other interested parties, on the 5 September my right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government and the Regions announced an independent review of the Fire Service. The review will be conducted by Professor Sir George Bain, who has an outstanding record in industrial relations and academia, including key roles at the London Business School, ACAS and the Low Pay Commission. He will be assisted by Sir Anthony Young, a past President of the TUC, and Sir Michael Lyons, who until recently was the Chief Executive of Birmingham City Council.

Housing

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  when (a) he and (b) other Ministers from his Department have attended meetings of the Affordable Housing Unit;
	(2)  when the Affordable Housing Unit will make a progress report on its remit to work with partners and stakeholders to increase significantly the supply of affordable housing in high demand areas;
	(3)  what progress has been made by the Affordable Housing Unit towards its remit to work with partners and stakeholders to increase significantly the supply of affordable housing in high demand areas.

Tony McNulty: In his statement of 18 July, my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister set out the need for a step change in housing supply in order to provide decent, affordable homes for people wherever they live, and to do that by promoting sustainable communities, including a series of policy measures which will help increase the supply of housing including affordable housing. My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister has said that he will return to the House at the turn of the year with a major statement on how this programme will be taken forward.
	Following my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister's statement the work of the Affordable Housing Unit has been extended to take account of this wider remit and the unit has been renamed the Planning, Housing and Growth Unit to reflect this. Research, which the Unit has commissioned, on topics such as airspace development and financial incentives for affordable housing is published as part of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's research programme and Ministers meet with officials regularly as part of the process of policy development.

Housing

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his estimate is of the amount of land required to accommodate the Government's housing targets by 2016.

Tony McNulty: No such estimates are made. Annual rates of housebuilding for each region are set out in regional planning guidance. At the local level, we expect local authorities to plan to meet housing requirements in the most sustainable way. The policy is set out in Planning Policy Guidance note 3, Housing, which provides for better use of land by encouraging sustainable densities and consideration of previously-developed sites before greenfield land.

Housing

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he expects to publish a review of London housing strategy.

Tony McNulty: The Government Office for London and the Housing Corporation published the 2002 edition of the London Housing Statement in August 2002. The Government Office will be working with partners on the production of a London Housing Strategy by September 2003.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average length of time was between an application for rehousing under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme and nomination to a property in the last 12 months.

Tony McNulty: 276 days.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what has been the annual rate of reletting of council housing stock in each year since 1972.

Tony McNulty: Centrally available information collected from local authorities annually since 1979–80 is presented below.
	
		Local Authority Stock Lettings to New and Existing Tenants: England
		
			  Total Lettings as a % of stock 
		
		
			 1979–80 411,800 8.6 
			 1980–81 444,000 9.2 
			 1981–82 414,700 8.6 
			 1982–83 438,800 9.0 
			 1983–84 429,100 9.1 
			 1984–85 429,300 9.3 
			 1985–86 437,000 9.6 
			 1986–87 430,200 9.6 
			 1987–88 425,800 9.6 
			 1988–89 410,200 9.5 
			 1989–90 390,300 9.3 
			 1990–91 400,900 9.9 
			 1991–92 406,500 10.4 
			 1992–93 399,900 10.4 
			 1993–94 404,900 10.8 
			 1994–95 407,900 11.1 
			 1995–96 415,200 11.6 
			 1996–97 422,000 12.2 
			 1997–98 403,900 11.9 
			 1998–99 378,900 11.4 
			 1999–2000 354,000 11.1 
			 2000–01 326,600 10.8 
		
	
	Note:
	Lettings include mutual exchanges and transfers of existing tenants, and lettings made to new tenants on either secure or non-secure tenancies.
	Source:
	DOE/DTLR/ODPM Housing Investment Programme returns (annual)

Housing

Mr. Gareth Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what discussions he has had with local authorities about the Housing Mutual model to encourage housing transfer.

Tony McNulty: Ministers have had no discussions with English local authorities about the Housing Mutual model to encourage housing transfer.

Housing

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the rate of change was in house prices in the past five years, broken down by region.

Tony McNulty: The rate of change in house prices in the past five years, by region, is estimated to have been as follows:
	
		
			 Region  
		
		
			 North East +33.7% 
			 North West +54.8% 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber +49.6% 
			 East Midlands +72.4% 
			 West Midlands +65.4% 
			 East +92.6% 
			 London +110.0% 
			 South East +94.6% 
			 South West +97.0% 
			 England +82.7% 
			 Wales +56.1% 
			 Scotland +27.5% 
			 Northern Ireland +66.1% 
			 United Kingdom +77.1% 
		
	
	Sources:
	ODPM Survey of Mortgage Lenders
	Increase in the regional house price indices between Q2 1997 and Q2 2002.

Housing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent action has been taken to address the Housing shortages in (a) Glasgow and (b) the UK.

Tony McNulty: Following devolution, housing policy in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is a matter for the relevant devolved administrations.
	Regional Planning Guidance requires planning bodies to strategically examine housing need, including the need for affordable housing, across their areas. We also expect local authorities to plan to meet their housing needs.
	However, we recognise the need for more affordable homes in England, and have substantially increased resources to address this. Funding for the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme (ADP) for next year will be #1.2 billion, almost double the figure for 2000–2001. This should deliver 22,700 homes next year.
	My right hon. Friend, the Deputy Prime Minister will return to the House at the turn of the year with a comprehensive long-term programme of action to tackle supply and demand issues, as promised in his statement of 18 July 2002, Official Report, Hansard, (col. 438).

Housing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent action has been taken to ensure that (a) the right to buy is not abused and (b) people are able to have the option of buying their homes.

Tony McNulty: We are concerned about abuses of the Right to Buy scheme and we have commissioned research into their scope and extent. The results will be available by the end of this year. We are considering what can be done about such abuses, but we have no plans to end the Right to Buy scheme.
	Under its devolved powers, the Scottish Parliament has passed legislation introducing a Modernised Right to Buy for new tenants in Scotland, to take effect from 30 September 2002.

Housing

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent measures have been taken to improve the quality and conditions of social housing in (a) Glasgow and (b) the UK.

Tony McNulty: Responsibility for housing in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is a matter for the relevant devolved administrations.
	For England we have set a Public Service Agreement target to bring all social housing up to a decent standard by 2010.
	To help ensure delivery against this target we have set up a Delivery Unit to work with Government Offices and the Housing Corporation to ensure local authorities and housing associations quantify the level of non-decent housing in their stock and put in place a strategy for dealing with the problem, backed up by a very significant increase in resources since 1997.
	The emphasis on delivery is paying dividends and we are on track to meet our interim target of bringing a third of the worst social housing up to a decent standard by 2004.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many applicants are on the waiting list for a nomination to a property under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme.

Tony McNulty: On 30 September 2002 there were 564 applicants on the waiting list for a nomination to a property under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what research his Department has undertaken into the impact of relets of council housing of the introduction of the Right-to-Buy scheme.

Tony McNulty: We have commissioned research into the scope and extent of abuses of the Right to Buy scheme. The results will be available by the end of this year.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the impact of the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme on easing pressure on social housing in London;
	(2)  how many and what size of properties were released by nominees from London boroughs to the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme in each year since 1979, broken down by region.

Tony McNulty: The number of London Lettings released by the operation of the scheme in recent years are listed in the table below. This represents a useful contribution to easing pressure on social housing in London.
	The number of households rehoused under the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme by property size are as follows. Figures prior to 1996–97 are not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. For 1999–00 (when the management of the Scheme was moved from North British Housing Association to HOMES) figures are not available by property size.
	
		
			 Local Authority 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Barking and Dagenham 2 2 bed 3 2 bed 4 2 bed 4 1 bedsit 1 1 bed 
			  3 3 bed  1 3 bed  1 1 bed 1 3 bed 
			  1 3 bed  
			 Barnet 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 0 2 bedsit 2 1 bed 
			  3 2 bed  1 2 bed  1 1 bed  
			  1 3 bed2 2 bed  
			  1 4 bed  
			 Bexley 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 0   
			 Brent 1 3 bed 1 1 bed  0 1 3 bed 1 2 bed 
			 Bromley 2 1 bed 1 1 bed 2 1 bed 0 1 1 bed 3 1 bed 
			   1 3 bed 1 2 bed  1 2 bed  
			   1 5+ bed 
			 Camden 2 bedsit 1 1 bed 6 1 bed 7 3 bedsit 1 1 bed 
			  4 1 bed 3 2 bed 3 2 bed  6 1 bed 2 1 bed 
			  3 2 bed 1 3 bed 3 3 bed  2 2 bed 1 3 bed 
			  1 4 bed 1 4 bed 
			 City of London 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 bedsit 1  1 bedsit 
			   1 2 bed 1 2 bed   1 1 bed 
			1 3 bed   1 2 bed 
			   1 3 bed 
			 Croydon 1 1 bed 1 bedsit 4 1 bed 7 6 1 bed 3 1 bed 
			   2 1 bed 3 3 bed  3 2 bed 3 2 bed 
			   2 3 bed   1 3 bed 2 3 bed 
			   1 4 bed 
			 Ealing 2 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 4 1 2 bed 1 1 bed 
			  1 3 bed 1 2 bed   2 3 bed 1 4 bed 
			 Enfield 5 1 bed 1 bedsit 1 1 bed 5 1 2 bed 1 1 bed 
			  2 2 bed 1 1 bed 1 2 bed  1 3 bed 3 2 bed 
			  2 3 bed 4 2 bed 2 3 bed   1 3 bed 
			   1 3 bed 
			 Greenwich 1 3 bed 5 1 bed 9 2 bed 6 5 1 bed 3 1 bed 
			  3 2 bed 9 2 bed 2 3 bed  4 2 bed 3 2 bed 
			   2 3 bed   3 3 bed 3 3 bed 
			   3 4 bed 
			 Hackney 1 bedsit 8 1 bed 3 bedsit 13 1 bedsit 1 1 bed 
			  6 2 bed 5 2 bed 3 1 bed  2 1 bed 2 2 bed 
			  6 3 bed 10 3 bed 9 2 bed  1 2 bed 2 3 bed 
			   1 5+ bed   6 3 bed  
			  1 4 bed  
			 Hammersmith & Fulham 2 1 bed 3 1 bed 4 2 bed 1 2 2 bed 1 bedsit 
			  3 2 bed 1 2 bed   1 3 bed 1 2 bed 
			  1 3 bed 1 3 bed   1 4 bed  
			   1 4 bed 
			 Haringey 1 1 bed 2 1 bed 7 2 bed 13 2 bedsit 2 1 bed 
			  3 2 bed 3 2 bed   1 2 bed 4 3 bed 
			  1 3 bed 5 3 bed   2 3 bed  
			  1 4 bed  
			 Harrow 1 2 bed 2 1 bed 1 1 bed 0  1 1 bed 
			  1 3 bed  
			 Havering 4 1 bed 3 1 bed 1 1 bed 4 3 1 bed  
			  3 2 bed 1 2 bed 4 2 bed  3 3 bed  
			  2 3 bed  
			 Hillingdon 1 3 bed 1 2 bed  0 1 1 bed 1 3 bed 
			   1 3 bed   1 2 bed  
			  2 3 bed  
			 Hounslow 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 bedsit 6 1 2 bed 4 1 bed 
			  2 2 bed 1 2 bed 1 1 bed  4 3 bed 3 2 bed 
			1 2 bed   1 3 bed 
			2 3 bed
			 Islington 4 1 bed 1 bedsit 2 1 bed 12 5 1 bed 3 1 bed 
			  5 2 bed 2 1 bed 4 2 bed  3 2 bed 4 2 bed 
			  1 3 bed 5 2 bed 1 3 bed  1 3 bed 5 3 bed 
			   4 3 bed 1 4 bed  2 4 bed 2 4 bed 
			   1 4 bed 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 bedsit 2 1 bedsit 1 bedsit 
			   2 2 bed 1 1 bed  1 3 bed  
			1 2 bed
			 Kingston upon Thames 1 1 bed 1 bedsit  1 1 3 bed 1 2 bed 
			   1 1 bed 
			 Lambeth 3 1 bed 1 1 bed 4 bedsit 11 2 1 bed 1 1 bed 
			  9 2 bed 5 2 bed 2 1 bed  4 2 bed 1 2 bed 
			  3 3 bed 6 3 bed 1 2 bed  3 3 bed 3 3 bed 
			  1 4 bed 2 4 bed 4 3 bed  1 4 bed 3 4 bed 
			 Lewisham 2 1 bed 3 1 bed 2 1 bed 6 2 1 bed 2 1 bed 
			  3 2 bed 9 2 bed 4 2 bed  1 2 bed 6 2 bed 
			  2 3 bed 6 3 bed 3 3 bed  5 3 bed 3 3 bed 
			   1 4 bed 1 4 bed
			 Merton 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 2 bed 2 2 2 bed 1 1 bed 
			   1 2 bed 2 3 bed  1 3 bed 1 3 bed 
			   1 3 bed 
			 Newham 1 bedsit 2 1 bed 2 1 bed 13 16 1 bed 2 1 bed 
			  6 1 bed 10 2 bed 10 2 bed  7 2 bed 10 2 bed 
			  12 2 bed 3 3 bed 5 3 bed  7 3 bed 10 3 bed 
			  4 3 bed 2 4 bed   3 4 bed 1 4 bed 
			  4 4 bed  
			 Redbridge 2 1 bed 2 2 bed 1 1 bed 0  2 1 bed 
			  1 2 bed  1 2 bed
			 Richmond upon Thames 1 2 bed 1 bedsit  0 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 
			  1 3 bed  
			 Southwark 4 1 bed 1 bedsit 7 1 bed 14 4 1 bed 2 1 bed 
			  11 2 bed 6 1 bed 7 2 bed  5 2 bed 8 2 bed 
			  10 3 bed 8 2 bed 8 3 bed  12 3 bed 6 3 bed 
			  3 4 bed 5 3 bed 1 4 bed  1 4 bed  
			   1 5+ bed
			 Sutton 1 3 bed 1 2 bed 1 1 bed 3 1 2 bed 1 1 bed 
			   1 5+ bed 1 2 bed  1 3 bed 1 3 bed 
			2 3 bed
			 Tower Hamlets 2 1 bed 1 bedsit 1 bedsit 10 10 1 bed 4 1 bed 
			  4 2 bed 6 1 bed 1 1 bed  4 2 bed 2 2 bed 
			  4 3 bed 7 2 bed 3 2 bed  2 3 bed 3 3 bed 
			   3 3 bed 1 3 bed  1 4 bed 1 4 bed 
			1 4 bed
			 Waltham Forest 2 1 bed 1 1 bed 1 1 bed 8 2 1 bed 1 1 bed 
			  5 2 bed 1 2 bed 3 2 bed  2 2 bed 1 2 bed 
			  1 3 bed 1 3 bed 1 3 bed  1 3 bed  
			 Wandsworth 1 1 bed 2 1 bed 4 1 bed 3 2 2 bed 2 1 bed 
			  3 2 bed 2 2 bed 4 2 bed  2 3 bed 2 2 bed 
			  1 3 bed  2 3 bed   2 3 bed 
			 Westminster 1 bedsit 1 bedsit 1 4 bed 2 1 1 bed 1 bedsit 
			  3 1 bed 3 1 bed1 1 bed 
			  1 4 bed  
			 Total 5 bedsit 8 bedsit 11 bedsit  10 bedsit 4 bedsit 
			  58 1 bed 63 1 bed 46 1 bed  69 1 bed 47 1 bed 
			  85 2 bed 86 2 bed 85 2 bed  51 2 bed 54 2 bed 
			  47 3 bed 53 3 bed 43 3 bed  65 3 bed 51 3 bed 
			  12 4 bed 10 4 bed 5 4 bed  10 4 bed 10 4 bed 
			   4 5+ bed 
			 Moves from RSLs (location and property size not recorded) — — 9 8 9 25 
			  
			 Total 207 224 199 166 214 191

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many appeals against the valuation of a property being sold under the right-to-buy scheme have been submitted in London in each year since 1980; and how many of those appeals resulted in a reduction in the valuation.

Tony McNulty: Figures for the number of appeals against right-to-buy valuations in London are only available from 1992 onwards, information prior to this date is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. They are as follows:
	
		
			 Year Appeals against valuations by local authorities Appeals against valuations by Registered Social Landlords 
		
		
			 1992–93 2,311 27 
			 1993–94 1,300 25 
			 1994–95 757 18 
			 1995–96 705 4 
			 1996–97 715 2 
			 1997–98 920 6 
			 1998–99 1,041 4 
			 1999–2000 1,615 39 
			 2000–01 2,008 42 
			 2000–02 1,758 80 
			  
			 Totals 13,130 247 
		
	
	Information on the number of appeals that resulted in a lower valuation is not held centrally, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	A review of the system for valuing properties for Right to Buy purposes is in progress. The results will be made publicly available when the project is completed.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the popularity of the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme among older tenants in London.

Tony McNulty: No recent assessment has been made of the popularity of the Scheme.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to require boroughs in London which have received above expected Approved Development Programme funding from the Housing Corporation to make a proportion of new lettings available to applicants from boroughs with lower than expected ADP funding.

Tony McNulty: The Housing Corporation will be working closely with London boroughs to agree a framework across London for the pooling of nominations for new lettings on a sub-regional basis, similar to those in existence under the London Housing Partnership programme, to widen choice and promote cohesive communities.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the impact that the Rent Rebate Subsidy Limitation regulations have on a local authority's capacity to finance the revenue costs of concierge security schemes.

Tony McNulty: Each local authority has a responsibility to balance its Housing Revenue Account, and to decide what services it can provide taking account of its income e.g. from rents and HRA subsidy.

Housing

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to establish separate funding provision for (a) new social and affordable housing, (b) repair and regeneration of social sector stock, and (c) funding of housing market renewal; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The 2002 spending review settlement has provided an extra #1.4 billion for housing over three years. This will help to provide well-designed, affordable homes where they are needed, improve stock conditions in both the social and the private sectors, and tackle low demand through significant funding for the pathfinder projects.
	Current arrangements channel most funding for new affordable housing through the Housing Corporation, and for repair of social stock through local authorities.
	My right hon. Friend The Deputy Prime Minister announced on 18 July 2002, Official Report, Hansard, (col. 438) that he plans to bring housing investment into a single regional pot, to ensure that housing investment decisions are brought together with planning for housing, and linked with regional economic and transport strategies. He is carefully considering the best way forward and will announce the details in due course.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to expand the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme.

Tony McNulty: There are currently no plans to expand the Seaside and Country Homes Scheme. However, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is working with HOMES, North British Housing Association and the London Borough of Bromley (on behalf of the London Boroughs) to review the workings of the scheme in order to improve the efficiency of its operation.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many households in London are one or more bedrooms below the bedroom standard, broken down by local authority.

Tony McNulty: The information requested for London, together with comparable data for England, are given in the table below.
	Information for individual local authorities is not held centrally, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	
		Households Below the Bedroom Standard(44): 2001–02(45)
		
			  Thousand Per cent. 
		
		
			 London 175 6 
			 England 501 2 
		
	
	Source:
	Survey of English Housing, ODPM
	(44) Bedroom standard is an indicator of occupation density. A notional number of bedrooms are allocated to each household in accordance with its age/sex/marital status composition and the relationship of the members to each other. This is then compared with the actual number of bedrooms (including bed-sitters) available for the sole use of the household.
	(45) Information for 2001–02 is provisional.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what research he has commissioned into the Housing Health and Safety Rating System since July 2001; what the terms of reference are for that research; who is undertaking it; and when he expects it to be published.

Tony McNulty: We are currently running three research projects relating to the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS). The first, which began in January 2001, is to develop the statistics to support the system, and is being carried out by Warwick University with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. The second, which began in August 2001, is an evaluation project, by DTZ Pieda, to identify the practical lessons to be learned from the publication of Version 1 of HHSRS in July 2000. The third, which began in September 2001, is to produce the guidance needed to assist local authorities in the application of HHSRS specifically to houses in multiple occupation, and is being carried out by the Building Research Establishment. Reports on these projects are expected to be published by the end of this year. This work will inform the production of Version 2 of HHSRS, which we expect to commission in time for publication next autumn as part of a comprehensive package of guidance.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent assessment he has made of the size and type of accommodation suitable as an alternative to LA and RSL tenants underoccupying their current accommodation; and what measures he has taken to encourge LAs and RSLs in areas of high demand to ensure that this type of accommodation is included in new developments.

Tony McNulty: No such assessment has been carried out by the Government. However, local authorities in their role as strategic housing authorities are required to assess the type of accommodation required in their areas. Local authorities may also require a proportion of affordable housing as part of new developments, often built by Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) and funded by the Housing Corporation. RSLs must ensure that bids for capital investment in social housing fit with local authority and regional priorities and the Housing Corporation's National Investment Strategy.
	Over the next 10 years, the Government will encourage councils and housing associations to set their rents to within 5 per cent. of the levels given by a national formula that reflects a property's size, location and condition. This will give tenants the choice over paying more for a larger property in a high cost area, or saving money by renting a smaller property.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to replace the current overcrowding standards; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The Government have no immediate plans to replace the overcrowding standard. But they are considering the extent to which overcrowding can be tackled through a new health and safety enforcement regime for housing, based on the new health and safety rating system.
	The Government intend to legislate to introduce the new enforcement regime as a replacement for the fitness standard when Parliamentary time allows.

Housing

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent assessment he has made of the impact of concierge security schemes on antisocial behaviour in local authority tower blocks.

Tony McNulty: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has not made a recent assessment of the impact of concierge security schemes on antisocial behaviour in local authority tower blocks.

Local Authority Capital Receipts

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to the answer of 7 May 2002, Official Report, column 22W, on local authority capital receipts, concerning his intention to pool housing capital receipts from debt-free authorities (a) what proportion of the receipts will be pooled, (b) on what basis and to which other local authorities the money will be redistributed, (c) on what date this arrangement will be implemented; (d) how this arrangement will encourage existing debt-free authorities to remain so and others to become debt-free, (e) whether the new arrangements will apply to clawbacks from previous large scale voluntary transfers of council housing and (f) how these proposals will help those local authorities who have difficulties in providing additional affordable housing due to the high price of buildings.

Tony McNulty: Our consultation paper ''The Way Forward for Housing Capital Finance'', issued in August, sought views on the detailed mechanism of the capital receipts pooling regime. The consultation period ended last Friday and we will make a further announcement when we have considered the responses. As the then Under-Secretary, my hon. Friend the member for Northampton, North (Ms Keeble) said in her reply on 7 May 2002, Official Report, Hansard (col. 21–22W) these changes will be introduced alongside the wider changes to the local authority capital finance system which required primary legislation; the timing of this is still to be decided.
	The proposal is about sharing out funding for investment fairly among local housing authorities. The current arrangements for redistributing the spending power of capital receipts do not apply to all authorities. Debt-free authorities are exempt—they retain all their capital receipts, and so finance substantially more investment from receipts than other authorities, regardless of their relative need to spend.
	There is no good reason for this anomaly. Pooling will ensure that capital resources are better targeted, so that all housing authorities have the access they need to fund new affordable housing and bring their stock up to decent standard. Without this, either investment in housing by the most needy authorities would need to fall, or substantial increases in taxes would be necessary to make good the money that debt-free authorities retain.

Compulsory Purchase

Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homes have been compulsorily purchased using central Government funding in each year since 1980.

Tony McNulty: This information requested is not held centrally, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Affordable Housing

Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many affordable housing units have been built in each year since 1980.

Tony McNulty: The figures for the number of permanent dwellings completed in England since 1980–81 by Registered Social Landlords and Local Authorities are given in the table below. The total numbers of completions, including private enterprise figures have also been given for comparison purposes.
	
		Number of Permanent Dwellings Completed: England -- Thousands
		
			 Fin Year Registered Social Landlords Local Authority RSL plus LA All Dwellings 
		
		
			 1980–81 19.9 73.7 93.6 201.2 
			 1981–82 15.0 47.6 62.6 161.0 
			 1982–83 10.8 29.5 40.2 153.0 
			 1983–84 14.8 29.5 44.3 179.3 
			 1984–85 13.4 28.7 42.0 179.1 
			 1985–86 10.9 22.0 32.9 168.3 
			 1986–87 10.4 19.1 29.5 184.6 
			 1987–88 11.2 16.2 27.4 194.9 
			 1988–89 10.8 16.1 26.9 199.0 
			 1989–90 10.9 14.7 25.6 174.1 
			 1990–91 14.6 13.0 27.5 160.0 
			 1991–92 16.0 7.1 23.1 155.1 
			 1992–93 24.0 2.6 26.5 142.5 
			 1993–94 30.2 1.5 31.7 147.7 
			 1994–95 31.4 0.9 32.2 158.0 
			 1995–96 30.2 0.8 31.0 154.6 
			 1996–97 24.6 0.5 25.1 146.2 
			 1997–98 21.4 0.3 21.7 149.6 
			 1998–99 18.9 0.2 19.1 138.6 
			 1999–00 17.4 0.1 17.5 141.8 
			 2000–01 16.6 0.4 17.0 133.7 
			 2001–02 14.4 0.1 14.6 130.3 
		
	
	Source:
	ODPM Housing statistics

Affordable Housing

Martin Linton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what advice he has given to local planning authorities on planning approval for affordable housing developments and creating mixed communities.

Tony McNulty: Planning policies for affordable housing are set out in Planning Policy Guidance note 3, Housing, and in Circular 6/98, Planning and Affordable Housing. Local authorities are expected to plan to meet the housing requirements of the whole community, including those in need of affordable housing. To encourage mixed and balanced communities, local authorities should ensure that new housing developments help to secure a better social mix by avoiding the creation of large areas of housing of similar characteristics.

Planning Guidance Notes

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the Court of Appeal decisions in (a) R. v Brent London Borough Council and Others (b) R. v Oxfordshire County Council's Exclusion Panel and Another on planning guidance notes and what plans he has to withdraw paragraph 98 of PPG8 so that local planning authorities may be able to take into account health affects and concerns relating to telephone masts.

Tony McNulty: Planning Policy Guidance Note 1 ''General Policy and Principles'' clearly states that in principle any consideration which relates to the use and development of land is capable of being a planning consideration. Whether a particular consideration falling within that broad class is material in any given case will depend on the circumstances.
	The Courts have also held that the Government's statements of planning policy are material considerations which must be taken into account, where relevant, in decisions on planning applications. These statements cannot make irrelevant any matter which is a material consideration in a particular case. But, where such statements indicate the weight that should be given to relevant considerations, decision-makers must have proper regard to them. If they elect not to follow relevant statements of the Government's planning policy, they must give clear and convincing reasons (E C Grandsen and Co Ltd v SSE and Gillingham BC 1985).
	Current planning guidance on telecommunications is set out in Planning Policy Guidance Note 8 (revised) (PPG8). PPG8 states that health considerations and public concern can in principle be material considerations in determining applications for planning permission and prior approval. Whether such matters are material in a particular case is ultimately a matter for the courts. It is for the decision-maker (usually the local planning authority) to determine what weight to attach to such considerations in any particular case.
	However, it is the Government's firm view that the planning system is not the place for determining health safeguards. It remains central Government's responsibility to decide what measures are necessary to protect public health. In the Government's view, if a proposed mobile phone base station meets the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines for public exposure it should not be necessary for a local planning authority, in processing an application for planning permission or prior approval, to consider further the health aspects and concerns about them.
	I have no plans to withdraw paragraph 98 from PPG8.

Starter Home Initiative

Martin Linton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the classes of key workers that have benefited and stand to benefit from the starter home initiative in London so far; and what decision he has made on which groups of key workers will benefit in the next round of funding.

Tony McNulty: #146 million Starter Home Initiative funding was allocated in September 2001 to help 4,600 key workers in London into home ownership by March 2004. The key workers in London benefiting from the Initiative are primarily teachers, police and health workers; and also some social workers, care workers, transport workers and fire fighters. We are considering, as part of our long term programme of action for housing, how key workers can best be targeted for housing assistance beyond March 2004, and will make an announcement about this at the turn of the year.

Starter Home Initiative

Martin Linton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many homes for key workers, by London borough, have been built or are under construction through the starter home initiative; and how many start-ups are expected in 2003–04.

Tony McNulty: The majority of Starter Home Initiative (SHI) funding is helping key workers to buy existing properties on the open market. As at the end of September 2002, some 460 key workers across London had purchased homes with SHI assistance. A further 4,140 in London should be helped through the Initiative by March 2004.

Backland Development

Mark Todd: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the lack of explicit guidance on backland development in the present PPG3 signifies a relaxation of the controls on backland development outlined in the 1992 guidance; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: There is increased emphasis in the new PPG3 on securing well-designed residential environments, which offer housing opportunities for all in the community in the most sustainable way. Local authorities and developers are expected to think imaginatively about designs and layouts which make good use of previously developed land in urban areas without compromising the quality of the environment. In determining planning applications, local planning authorities should reject poor design.

National Land Use Database

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will require local authorities to publish lists of sites submitted to the National Land Use Database; and when he intends to issue such a requirement.

Tony McNulty: Aggregate figures for local authorities for 2001 were published on 12 September 2002. A list of sites is on the NLUD web site (www.nlud.org.uk) and is available without charge to the public sector under licence. The information for an individual local authority can also be made available to the private sector with the agreement of the local authority concerned. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is working to secure agreement on making the information more widely available.

Regional Governance

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the proposed size of an individual constituency in an elected regional assembly in the north-west of England.

Nick Raynsford: The size of an individual constituency will depend on the total number of members of the assembly in each region. As set out in chapters 6 and 7 of the Regional Governance White Paper, an assembly would have between 25 and 35 members in total, mainly depending on its size of population, and around two-thirds of members would represent individual constituencies. The average population per constituency in the north-west would therefore be between around 290,000 (with 23 constituency members) and around 420,000 (with 16 constituency members).

Regional Governance

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what criteria will be used to determine the level of support necessary in Cheshire for the establishment of a regional assembly in the North West of England; and what level of turnout will be used as the democratically legitimate measure for an affirmative vote in any proposed referendum on regional Government in the North West of England.

Nick Raynsford: As the Regional Governance White Paper, Your Region, Your Choice, said, the primary factor in deciding where a referendum should be held will be the level of interest in holding a referendum in each of the eight regions. A subsidiary factor will be the need to avoid unnecessarily distracting local government with unitary reviews where there is only limited demand for a referendum (paragraph 9.3).
	An affirmative vote at a referendum will occur if a majority of those voting at the referendum vote in favour of establishing an elected assembly for their region.

Regional Governance

Joyce Quin: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the outcome of the consultation on the White Paper on Regional Governance.

Nick Raynsford: The White Paper Your Region, Your Choice formally invited comments on stakeholder involvement with elected regional assemblies; the closing date for responses was 31 August 2002. But the White Paper also offered the opportunity for general views to be submitted—there is no deadline for these views and comments are still being received.
	To date, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has received around 1,100 representations on the White Paper, of which around 200 offered comments on stakeholder involvement with elected assemblies
	In addition, we have received around 1,500 postcards in support of the Cornish Constitutional Convention campaign for a referendum on establishing a Cornish Assembly.
	We are currently undertaking detailed assessments of stakeholder responses, and of general responses to the White Paper. These will be published on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website later in the year. We will then set out our further proposals on stakeholder involvement, taking into account views expressed in the consultation.
	It remains the case that we intend to introduce a Bill to provide for referendums and associated local government reviews as soon as Parliamentary time allows, with the aim of enabling the first referendums to be held during this Parliament.

Home Buying and Selling

Lynne Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will publish the consultation paper on the seller's pack and reform of the home buying and selling system.

Tony McNulty: A major consultation paper ''The Key to Easier Home Buying and Selling'' was published in December 1998. The consultation found wide-ranging support for the introduction of a seller's pack in England and Wales. We are committed to making it easier for people buying and selling homes through the introduction of a seller's pack, and the necessary legislation will be reintroduced as soon as Parliamentary time allows. Following discussions with representatives of consumers and the main professional and trade bodies, we intend to publish shortly two further consultation papers dealing with the detailed contents of the seller's pack and the application of the seller's pack in areas where property values and demand are very low.

High Hedges

Simon Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what proposals he has to bring forward legislation relating to the control of high hedges and trees.

Tony McNulty: The Government are committed to legislation, that would give local authorities in England and Wales powers to deal with complaints about high hedges, as soon as Parliamentary time can be found.

HMOs

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many fatalities and serious injuries there have been in houses of multiple occupation by local authority area in each of the past 10 years.

Tony McNulty: The information requested is not held centrally, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Empty Dwellings

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many dwellings he estimates are empty in each local authority area in Devon, broken down by (a) local authority, (b) RSL, (c) MOD, (d) other public sector and (e) the private sector; and how many of these are owner-occupied.

Tony McNulty: The number of empty dwellings in each local authority area in Devon at 1 April 2001 broken down by tenure is shown in the table below.
	
		Vacant Dwellings by Tenure in Devon by Local Authority Area at 1 April 2001
		
			  Local authority(46) Registered Social Landlord(47) Other Public(46) Other Private(46) of which: Owner occ.(46) Total 
		
		
			 East Devon 27 18 0 2740 2693 2785 
			 Exeter 40 56 2 820   918 
			 Mid Devon 18 15 0 841 698 874 
			 North Devon 0 23 0 2475 2050 2498 
			 Plymouth 417 161 297 3633 2943 4508 
			 South Hams 0 24 0 4576   4600 
			 Teignbridge 12 5 0 2741   2758 
			 Torbay 0 56 0 299   355 
			 Torridge 12 7 0 1000   1019 
			 West Devon 0 17 24 477 425 518 
			  
			 Total 526 382 323 19602   20833 
		
	
	Notes:
	 —not known
	Sources:
	(46) ODPM's 2001 Housing Strategy Statistical Appendices completed by local authorities
	(47) Housing Corporation's Regulatory and Statistical Return (RSR) completed by RSLs
	Information on empty MOD stock is not held centrally at local authority (or county) level, and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. These dwellings should be included in the local authorities' estimates of ''Other public'' sector vacants in the above table.

Local Authority Social Housing Grant

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  what plans he has to abolish the local authority social housing grant and replace it with increased resources to the approved development programme to support the priorities of regional housing statements;
	(2)  what proposals he has to convert the current local authority repayable loans to registered social landlords into one-off grants.

Tony McNulty: The local authority social housing grant (LASHG) enables those local authorities with the necessary capital resources to make a loan to Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) for new or improved social housing, which is then reimbursed by the Housing Corporation. It is a demand-led mechanism, with no link to relative need to spend.
	We have been consulting on options for replacing this system with one that targets resources to areas with the greatest housing need. We have invited comments on two alternatives—providing resources through the Approved Development Programme, or replacing LASHG with a regime in which local authorities make grants direct to RSLs.
	The consultation period ended last Friday and we will make a further announcement when we have considered the responses.

Millennium Dome

Nigel Evans: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the monthly running costs of the Millennium Dome were in the last six months.

Tony McNulty: The total running cost* expenditure on the Dome incurred in the six months up until the end of July 2002 (the last month for which final figures are available) was #1.618 million. This is made up according to the following monthly breakdown:
	
		
			 Month Cost 
		
		
			 Feb #290,000 
			 Mar #302,000 
			 April #255,000 
			 May #277,000 
			 June #244,000 
			 July #250,000 
		
	
	Note:
	* Monthly costs include rates, utilities, security and maintenance, and English Partnerships' staff costs on management and maintenance of the Dome. Costs are calculated on an accruals basis and may be subject to reassessments, by the relevant authorities, of rates or other charges included in the cost of managing and maintaining the Dome.
	These costs, and other costs incurred by English Partnerships since they took ownership of the Dome on 1 July 2001, will be recovered from sale proceeds.

Millennium Dome

Nigel Evans: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the total cost of the Millennium Dome to public funds has been.

Tony McNulty: The New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC), which was responsible for building the Dome and running of the Millennium Experience, was allocated #628 million of National Lottery funds from the Millennium Commission for the Millennium Experience, which included the associated national programme of events across the UK as well as the Dome at Greenwich. NMEC is currently in solvent liquidation and it is expected that some #25 million of this grant facility will not be required.
	Up to the end of July this year, English Partnerships (EP) had incurred a total cost of #21.4m. This includes, from 1 July 2001—when EP took over the ownership of the Dome—#3.3m for the management, maintenance and security of the Dome; #6.5m for decommissioning the contents of the Dome and its site in preparation for the future long term use; and #4.9m in connection with the sale process. It also includes #6.7m for the previous competition to find a long-term use for the Dome. All of these costs incurred by EP in relation to the Dome will be recovered from sale proceeds.

Second Homes (Council Tax)

Andrew George: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the responses given to his Department's consultation exercise on second homes and council tax.

Christopher Leslie: An analysis of the responses to the consultation exercise is already available on the website of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and I have now placed a copy of this analysis in the House Library. I hope to be able to announce our decisions on the way forward shortly.

Public Service Agreements

Don Foster: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list for each year since 2000 the public service agreements made by his Department.

Nick Raynsford: Listed below are details of the Local Public Service Agreements signed by this Department and the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions since 2000.
	
		
			 Year   
		
		
			 2000 No agreements signed  
			 2001 Agreements signed with Birmingham City Council 
			   Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council 
			   Cambridgeshire County Council 
			   London Borough of Camden 
			   Coventry City Council 
			   Derbyshire County Council 
			   Kent County Council 
			   London Borough of Lewisham 
			   Middlesborough Council 
			   Milton Keynes Council 
			   Newcastle City Council 
			   London Borough of Newham 
			   Norfolk County Council 
			   London Borough of Richmond upon Thames 
			   Sheffield City Council 
			   Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council 
			   Sunderland City Council 
			   Surrey County Council 
			   Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council 
			   Warwickshire County Council 
			   Buckinghamshire County Council 
			   East Riding of Yorkshire Council 
			   Leeds City Council 
			   Peterborough City Council 
			 2002 Agreements signed with Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council 
			   Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council 
			   London Borough of Bromley 
			   Cheshire County Council 
			   London Borough of Croydon 
			   Derby City Council 
			   Devon County Council 
			   Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council 
			   Durham County Council 
			   Essex County Council 
			   London Borough of Greenwich 
			   London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham 
			   Halton Borough Council 
			   Hampshire County Council 
			   Herefordshire County Council 
			   Kirklees Metropolitan Council 
			   Leicester City Council 
			   Lincolnshire County Council 
			   Liverpool City Council 
			   Manchester City Council 
			   Medway Council 
			   Portsmouth City Council 
			   Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council 
			   Salford City Council 
			   Slough Borough Council 
			   London Borough of Southwark 
			   Staffordshire County Council 
			   Stoke-on-Trent City Council 
			   Suffolk County Council 
			   London Borough of Sutton 
			   Swindon Borough Council 
			   Telford and Wrekin Council 
			   London Borough of Tower Hamlets 
			   Warrington Borough Council 
			   Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council 
			   Wiltshire County Council 
			   Worcestershire County Council 
			   York City Council

Property Prices (Taunton)

Adrian Flook: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the effects of the change in property prices in Taunton since 1999; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: According to the Department's Survey of Mortgage Lenders, house prices in south-west England rose by 31.8 per cent. during the three years 1999 to 2001. According to HM Land Registry figures the average price of residential property sold in Taunton Deane was #85,097 in 1999 and #109,530 in 2001.
	Homeownership is affordable for most people. Homeowners are benefiting from low interest rates, low unemployment and robust income growth. For people purchasing a home in south-west England during 2001, total mortgage payments averaged 17.44 per cent. of their income. This compares to 28.42 per cent. of income in 1990, and is lower than 1999 (17.91 per cent.) and 2000 (19.43 per cent.).
	However, we are well aware that there can be serious problems for many first time buyers in areas of high demand. We are committed to improving people's housing choices, and to ensuring that everyone has the opportunity of a decent home. Our aim is to deliver new affordable housing where it is needed most, in more sustainable forms.

Data Protection

Harry Cohen: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister in relation to communications data as defined in RIPA, how many officials from his Department he estimates will be authorised to seek access to communications data; how many times officials have sought access to such data from communications providers including Internet service providers under the Data Protection Act 1998 in the last year; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Leslie: No officials in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister or its Agencies are engaged in law enforcement activities requiring them to be authorised to access communications data as defined in Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.

Parish Councillors (Model Code of Conduct)

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to request parish councils to indicate how many of their parish councillors have been resigned in response to the introduction of the Model Code of Conduct for Parish Councils.

Christopher Leslie: We have no plans to request such information from parish councils.

Personation

Jane Griffiths: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what measures he proposes to introduce to prevent personation for the local elections to be held on 1 May 2003.

Nick Raynsford: We have no evidence to suggest that personation will be a significant problem at local elections in May 2003, and have no plans to introduce any new specific measures to prevent personation.
	In our prospectus, issued in September 2002, inviting councils to propose pilot voting schemes in the May 2003 local elections, we have made clear that such schemes would need to ensure that any new method of voting is at least as secure, if not more secure, than conventional electoral practices. The Electoral Commission will, as required by statute, be consulted before any pilot schemes are approved. The programme of pilots itself will be looking at new ways to incorporate specific measures to test security and fraud.

Congress of Local and Regional Authorities

John Hayes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the (a) national budgetary contribution to, (b) role of and (c) national representation to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities; when he last met representatives from that group; and if he has made representations on this body to the Foreign Office in the context of the Convention on the Future of Europe.

Christopher Leslie: Member states of the Council of Europe (CoE), including the UK, make no direct budgetary contribution to the Congress of local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE), which is a consultative body within the CoE consisting of local and regional elected representatives from each of the 44 member states. CLRAE is funded through the CoE's ordinary budget as provided by member states and as agreed by the CoE's Committee of Ministers.
	CLRAE has a Regional and a Local Chamber, membership of which is on the basis of nomination by member states' governments according to the requirements of the CLRAE founding charter. The UK has 9 full and 9 substitute seats in each Chamber. The UK's nomination procedure provides for a balanced representation of local and regional interests; all UK appointees must hold an electoral mandate in a UK local authority, the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, the Northern Ireland Assembly, or the GLA.
	My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister met the leader of the UK's CLRAE delegation at the recent World Environment Conference in Johannesburg. Within the Central Local Partnership my right hon. Friend the Minister for Europe and I regularly meet representatives of local government, including members of the UK CLRAE delegation, to discuss European issues, including the work of the Convention on the Future of Europe.

Homelessness

Tim Loughton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many families were living in bed and breakfast accommodation in (a) East Worthing and Shoreham and (b) West Sussex in each year since 1997.

Tony McNulty: The East Worthing and Shoreham Parliamentary constituency is covered by Adur DC and part of Worthing DC. Information reported by these and other councils in West Sussex on the total number of households—including couples and single persons without children—accommodated in bed and breakfast units under statutory homelessness provisions at the end of March in each year since 1997 is summarised below.
	
		Homeless Households in Bed and Breakfast Accommodation as at 31 March*
		
			  Adur DC Worthing DC All DCs in West Sussex 
		
		
			 1997 not reported 39 65 (estimated) 
			 1998 5 47 79 
			 1999 3 37 74 
			 2000 3 37 74 
			 2001 14 22 81 
			 2002 17 18 128 
		
	
	Note:
	* includes households accommodated pending completion of enquiries by the local authority.
	Sources:
	1997: P1(E) housing return (quarterly)
	1998 onwards: Housing Investment Programme returns (annual)
	Earlier this year the Government announced a new commitment to ensure that by March 2004 no family with children will be placed in B&B other than in an emergency, and even then for no more than 6 weeks. This was accompanied by changes in Housing Benefit subsidies to make leasing self-contained temporary accommodation more cost effective, and an additional #35 million to help local authorities find alternatives to B&B.

Homelessness

Tim Loughton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he last met the Director of the Homelessness Unit.

Tony McNulty: My right hon. Friend, the Deputy Prime Minister regularly meets officials in the course of his official duties.

Homelessness

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent estimate he has made of the level of homelessness; how he defines a homeless person; and if he will make a statement.

Barbara Roche: At the end of June 2002 81,170 households in England were living in temporary accommodation, including over 6,500 families with children in bed and breakfast hotels, and around 600 people were sleeping rough on any one night.
	Under the homelessness legislation (Housing Act 1996), a person is ''statutorily homeless'' if they do not have accommodation which they have a legal right to live in, which is physically available to them and which it would be reasonable for them to continue to occupy.
	In March 2002, the Homelessness Directorate published a report ''More than a Roof'', which outlined the Government's new approach to tackling homelessness funded by #125 million over this year. The Homelessness Act 2002 will also bring about radical change in the way that central and local government, and all other partners, work together to tackle homelessness. For the first time ever, local authorities will be required to carry out a review and develop a strategy for their area that prevents homelessness and provides solutions for people who are, or who may become homeless.

Homelessness

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what measures he is taking to tackle homelessness in rural areas.

Tony McNulty: The Homelessness Directorate's report ''More than a roof'', sets out specific measures to tackle homelessness backed up by a #125 million investment over the next year. The Homelessness Directorate has provided a total of over #3.7 million to local authorities in rural areas over the next year to fund schemes such as mediation services for family and couples in relationship difficulties; additional support for women fleeing domestic violence; rent deposit guarantee schemes to help homeless people find housing in the private sector; court and landlord advice services to reduce evictions; and debt and welfare counselling to help people sustain their tenancies.

Pathfinder Renewal Project

Peter Pike: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will announce the resources allocation for the Pathfinder Renewal Project.

Tony McNulty: The 2002 spending review settlement has provided an extra #1.4 billion for housing. This will help to provide well-designed, affordable homes where they are needed, improve stock conditions in both the social and the private rented sectors, and tackle low demand through significant funds for the pathfinder projects. My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister is giving careful consideration to the best use of this additional funding to deliver sustainable communities. My right hon. Friend has said that he will report back to the House at the turn of the year.

Local Government

John Pugh: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister where responsibility will lie for (a) police, (b) waste disposal and (c) fire services in new unitary authorities.

Nick Raynsford: The Regional Governance White Paper, Your Region, Your Choice, published in May, sets out the Government's plans to establish unitary local authorities in place of existing county and district councils in those regions where people vote in a referendum for elected regional assemblies. In any region where the Government decides that a referendum should take place, the Boundary Committee for England will carry out a review and recommend the best unitary arrangements for the two-tier parts of that region. A referendum will then be held to see whether people support the creation of an elected assembly. The new unitary arrangements will be implemented if—but only if—a majority of those voting in the referendum voted for an elected regional assembly.
	Where new unitary arrangements are introduced, we would expect that existing police authorities would remain in place. Appointments to these authorities would be made either by unitary districts or by the unitary county council, depending on the new unitary structure.
	There are currently combined fire authorities in former county areas which have only unitary local authorities; and also in areas where there are one or more unitaries, district councils and a county council. Where changes lead to district-based unitaries in future, we would expect there to be a combined fire authority, but where they lead to a unitary county with no existing or new district-based unitaries, we would expect the county council to remain responsible for providing fire services. This is without prejudice to our consideration of any recommendations on the organisation of the fire service that Professor Sir George Bain's recently announced review might make.
	Waste disposal is currently a responsibility of county councils and would become a responsibility of unitary authorities where these are established in future in regions that have an elected assembly.

Local Authority Referendums

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what has been the average turnout for referendums held by local authorities to establish opinion on local issues.

Nick Raynsford: Information about turnout for those referendums which local authorities hold voluntarily is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. The average turnout in binding referendums which councils held between June 2001 and October 2002 on whether or not their area should have a directly elected mayor was 29 per cent., within a range of 10 per cent. to 64 per cent.

Rural Housing

Gary Streeter: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans his Department has to encourage the provision of more affordable housing in rural communities.

Tony McNulty: The Government recognise that there is a shortage of affordable housing in many rural towns and villages. The need can be for both homes to rent and to buy.
	We expect all local authorities to develop housing strategies and to develop local housing need assessments as part of their long-term plans. We believe that judicious use of their planning powers can deliver more affordable housing.
	By next year, we expect to deliver around 9,000 affordable homes annually in rural areas, including 3,000 in small settlements. Of these, a proportion will be for low-cost home ownership.